


Marionette

by Denkinoko



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-15
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-06-08 12:25:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 33,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6854551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denkinoko/pseuds/Denkinoko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emotionally hurt even years after the traumatizing events that happened when Chara possessed Frisk, she tries to regain control of her life and find the answers she seeks involving a certain terrifying -but charming- skeleton. <br/>Undertale with a twist, and the tale after the game. Yes, sinners, this is for you.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Into the abyss

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!   
> This story will be divided in two parts: the first arc will be about Chara taking control of Frisk's body, and the second arc will be about what happens with her six years after.   
> I hope you enjoy it! Thank you very much for choosing my work <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody!  
> As I said in the description of the story, the first arc will be about Chara possessing Frisk. Nevertheless, it is similar to Undertale's plot, so if you'd like to skip all of that and jump straight ahead to the next part of the story without worrying about my Frisk's character development, what happens with Chara or her relationship with others, I strongly recommend that you read chapters 1, 11, 12, 13 and 17 to understand better. From chapter 17 onwards, it is my original story.  
> I hope that you enjoy it! Thank you very much for reading ^^ every comment will be gladly accepted.  
> Also, please try to ignore the usage of the apostrophe (') and quotation marks (‘’) because my computer is stupid and somebody pointed it out at chapter 18. I'll correct it, but slowly :( I'm sorry.  
> Without further ado, Marionette.

I slowly opened my eyes, just enough to see darkness surrounding me, and a bright light at the end of a very long tunnel. I closed my eyes, sleepy and sore. Then I opened my eyes again... and realised I had been sleeping on a bed of big, yellow flowers. I looked up, not being able to move any muscle.  
I had fallen through an enormous hole, and the flowers had, somehow, cushioned my fall.  
I was glad; at this point it didn't feel like anything was broken. Still, I wasn't in the mood for moving yet. 

What had happened? I couldn't remember. I couldn't even remember falling down. I couldn't remember anything. 

Starting to feel anguished, I decided to stand up and figure out what to do. The problem was... I couldn't. I tried moving, with all my might. I couldn't even move my eyes, and I was getting desperate. Then, finally, I could feel how I got up. Only... only I wasn't trying at the moment.  
What the hell was going on?

I heard my neck snap, and my lips slowly turning into an enormous smile, as a wicked laugh resounded in my brain. I felt my body walk away on its own, towards a big entrance, away from the hole, away from the only exit to the surface. 

Suddenly, I heard a voice.  
"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower! Hmm... You’re new to The Underground, aren'tcha?"  
"The Underground...?" I thought. So, that's how that place was called. Not very imaginative, but easy to remember.  
"Golly, you must be so confused. Someone ought to teach you how things work around here! I guess little old me will have to do. Ready?"  
Oh, I was ready all right. Ready to know how to get the hell out of there, fast.  
"Here we go!" 

As the weird flower spoke, I felt as if someone had lifted me above the ground. It was a strange feeling, like weighing just one third of the usual.  
And then, I saw it. It was a bright, red heart, floating around in front of me, moving. That little heart had come out of my chest.  
Just as if the flower could read my mind, he went on.  
"See that heart? That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being! Your SOUL starts off weak, but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV. What does LV stand for? Why, LOVE, of course!"  
The flower kept speaking, offering some LOVE to me. I was surprised when I saw little white pellets floating around my soul, because I thought I was just seeing things. But then, as those so-called "friendliness pellets" touched my soul, I froze with pain. It felt unlike anything I had felt before, like a sharp pain inside my whole body. I fell to my knees as the flower's face changed drastically, and with a twisted, devilish grin, and a penetrating dark voice, it announced:  
"You idiot. In this world, it's kill or be killed. Why would anyone pass up an opportunity like this?" I choked down on fear, as tremors of panic shook my body. Was that really going to be how my life would end? I felt a lump in my throat and the voice in my head again, gasping this time, as many more of those pellets surrounded my soul. It moved around, frantically, on its own. It was the end. I was indeed going to die there, alone.  
"Die."

The flower laughed hysterically, while the pellets closed in. How would dying feel? I didn't know, and I certainly didn't discover it at the moment, because those pellets didn't hurt me. They healed me.  
The flower seemed just as surprised as I was, and before anyone could say anything; it suddenly flew away, stricken by a ball of fire. 

Then, the biggest goat I had ever seen appeared. It was about two meters tall, and it was wearing a long dress. It had a gentle, protective mother-like expression, and was standing up on her hind legs, just like a human. She had saved me. I felt my body stand up, refreshed and relieved, and my lips being curved into that wicked smile again. It was as if whatever was controlling me... felt recognition. 

"What a horrible creature. Torturing such a poor, innocent youth... Ah, do not be afraid my child, I am TORIEL, caretaker of the RUINS".  
She spoke in a soft voice, and had the warmest of smiles.  
"I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down. You are the first human to come here in a long time. Come! I will guide you through the catacombs" she said, and urged me to follow. 

My limbs moved on their own as we went through a corridor, and got to a room with some weird buttons and a switch. She pushed some of those, and then flipped the switch, explaining that the RUINS were full of those puzzles, and that I had to adjust myself to the sight of them, because I needed to solve them in order to move around from one room to another. I thought it was complicated, but the voice in my head scoffed with impatience. Whatever got inside me and moved me around clearly knew what she was talking about. 

The thing made me move, and unlocked the puzzle in that long corridor. Toriel congratulated me and we went on to the next room, where a dummy was. She explained that whenever I encountered a monster, I simply had to talk, and made me practise with the dummy. As usual, my body moved on its own. Strangely enough, I felt my soul being pulled out again, and as I braced myself to try and talk to the dummy... my body attacked, shoving the stick I was holding in my hand directly into it, and in one swift blow, the dummy turned to dust. My lips curved, once again, forming that wicked smile. 

Toriel was as shocked as me, but didn't make a big issue out of it. Then, we proceeded. Suddenly, a weird kind of frog appeared, and just as quickly as it did with the dummy, my soul was taken out and my body hit the frog, which turned into a pile of dust. If I could have, I would have opened my eyes and screamed for help. I had a psycho controlling me! It was killing! And it was laughing... with a loud laugh, filled with mania, which only I could listen to. Toriel didn't seem to notice. 

We went on, and Toriel left me alone in order to attend to some business. I was determined to stay until she came back, but the stranger thought otherwise. Just as she left, my body started to move again, exploring the ruins... moving as if it knew exactly where it was going. 

All of a sudden, another frog came, and the process repeated. Then, came another, and another... as we moved through the ruins, more monsters and puzzles appeared, and every single one was taken care of by this psycho. I couldn't believe my eyes... it was my own body killing innocent creatures, and I couldn't do anything about it. I really tried to move, tried hard to do anything to stop the thing from killing any further... but I couldn't. I could only stand and watch until everybody turned to dust... until nobody came.


	2. Mom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thank you very much for reading my work, and thanks to the users who left kudos! That made me extremely happy :D I hope that you continue reading my story, and that you like it. As always, reviews are always welcome <3  
> Enjoy the second chapter!

I started to feel empty. I hoped everything was a dream, but it felt much too real. I was overcome with fear, but there was nothing I could do. I tried to fight, to move my own body again... but I could not. I could only watch through another's eyes as we explored the empty ruins. 

I noticed the thing knew exactly where we were, because it solved the puzzles with ease and left some rooms unexplored. It left gold in a spider web and took a donut some spiders left there, and afterwards went straight to the end of a corridor, where a toy knife could be found. It dropped the stick and took the knife, with a triumphant smile, as it walked back the way we came, but this time, turning right. We reached a beautiful house, and to my surprise, Toriel was outside and seemed to be in a hurry, probably to find me. 

She guided me into the house, and showed me what was supposed to be a room of my own. She wanted me to stay, and live with her in the ruins. Oh Toriel, if only she knew. I just wanted to talk to her, to ask her for help, maybe she could save me with her magic... but there was nothing I could do. The thing moved around and went to bed, forcing me to sleep. 

When we woke up, there was a slice of the butterscotch-cinnamon pie Toriel called us about before. Nonchalantly, barely paying attention to it, the thing took the slice of pie and shoved it into my pockets. We went out of the room, and saw Toriel reading by the fireplace. It moved me around, straight to the kitchen, looking for something.  
All of a sudden, I heard a voice. It was coming from me, but it was not mine. It was a male's voice, twisted with bitterness and anger.  
"Where are the knives?"  
I froze. This... this thing was sick. 

He stormed out of the kitchen, headed directly to Toriel. She greeted us with one of her warm smiles.  
"Up already, I see?" she paused.  
"Um, I want you to know how glad I am to have someone here. There are so many old books I want to share. I want to show you my favourite bug-hunting spot. I've also prepared a curriculum for your education. This may come as a surprise to you... but I have always wanted to be a teacher. Actually, perhaps that isn't very surprising." I smiled tenderly, a smile that my body did not obey. She was so kind...  
"STILL. I am glad to have you living here. Oh, did you want something? What is it?"  
And the voice could be heard again, but in a very soft, innocent tone this time.  
"When can I go home?"  
"What?" Toriel froze. "This... this IS your home now. Um... would you like to hear about this book I am reading? It is called "72 uses for snails". How about it?"  
"How about you tell me how to exit the ruins?" the voice went on.  
"Um... how about an exciting snail fact? Did you know that snails... make terrible shoelaces? Interesting."  
The voice could be heard again, but this time, filled with impatience.  
"How. To. Exit. The Ruins."

Toriel's face became bitter. "...I have to do something. Stay here." She said, as she stood up and ran for the stairs near the entrance. My body obediently followed.  
We came to a very long corridor, and found Toriel walking through it. Suddenly, she spoke.  
"You wish to know how to return "home", do you not? Ahead of us lies the end of the ruins, a one-way exit to the rest of the underground. I am going to destroy it. No one will ever be able to leave again. Now, be a good child and go upstairs" she said, as she shooed me away. As expected, my body followed her further. 

She stopped and continued speaking.  
"Every human that falls down here meets the same fate. I have seen it again and again. They come. They leave. They die. You naive child... if you leave the Ruins... They... ASGORE... will kill you. I am only protecting you, do you understand? ...go to your room." She said, as she walked to the end of the tunnel. My body, once again, followed. 

Toriel stopped one last time as she got to an enormous door.  
"This is your final warning. You want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like the others. There is only one solution to this. Prove yourself... Prove to me you are strong enough to survive." 

This said, I felt my soul being pulled out of my body again. Was she really trying to fight? And then I realised. I couldn't control myself. Toriel needed to run, NOW.  
Once again, I tried to regain control of my own body. I just couldn't let her die there! She was so nice, she was so kind... she just couldn't die, not like this, not because of me. I screamed and cried, trying to free myself from the man, the thing that was controlling me... once again, to no avail. He smirked. And the battle began. And just as quickly as it began, it ended. With one swift, strong blow, Toriel was left with an enormous cut. Eyes wide, she said her last words, as I screamed inside of my own head, trying to wake up from this horrible dream... 

"Y... you... really hate me that much? Now I see who I was protecting by keeping you here. Not you... but them!" She fell to her knees. "Ha... ha..." and with that final, incredulous laugh, she turned to dust, and her soul split in half. 

I screamed as the dust fell on my body. The thing inside me laughed hysterically, as he rubbed the dust on my skin. "This can't be happening... This can't be happening..." I chanted, again and again, as if that would make everything better, as if that would take me back home, as if this had never happened. But it didn’t. And with that wicked smile plastered on my face, my body went through the door and headed towards the exit. 

We were walking through a long corridor when that stupid flower appeared once again, and with a little smile, it spoke.  
"Hahaha... you're not really human, are you? No. You're empty inside. Just like me." Its face distorted once again, the sudden appearance frightening me. "In fact... You're Chara, right? We're still inseparable, after all this years..." He said, as his face became friendly again.  
That made me snap out of my trance. Chara? So the thing had a name... and why did the goddamn flower have something to do with it!? My insides burned with rage. This flower was involved in all of this!? I was so going to rip every single one of its petals off slowly and painfully... If I ever regained control of my body.  
"Listen." It went on. "I have a plan to become all powerful. Even more powerful than you and your stolen soul. Let's destroy everything in this wretched world" it said, as its face shifted once again to that demoniac expression. "Everyone, everything in these worthless memories... LET'S TURN THEM ALL TO DUST. Hmmm... That’s a wonderful idea." It said, at last, smiling and burrowing itself in the ground. 

Chara laughed once more, and licked his lips as we crossed the last door... as we left the ruins, even emptier than before.


	3. Skeletons and puzzles

A beautiful winter forest could be seen, decorated with tall, dark leafless trees and lots of snow. Chara walked through the only path, out of the ruins, slowly but surely, as if he was trying to remember where he was. The flower knew him, I thought. That means Chara was from the Underground. That would explain why he knew where to go. Only this time, it seemed like he wasn't that sure. The scenery, though beautiful, was still. There was this haunting feeling inside of me, the bitter wind and all the trees that looked like dry tombs... standing there like monuments for the fallen, reminding me of the victims of the cruel being that had slipped into my body. 

I felt cold. Even if my body was being controlled, I could feel everything, and though I would have surely given up anything for warmer clothes, Chara didn't seem to notice. This... man, child, creature, whatever it was, was so full of hate, a little snow had no effect on him. Either that or he couldn't feel it. I was still shocked from what happened before. I couldn't believe it... I tried to calm myself down and think rationally.  
Toriel was definitely the kindest monster I have ever met. I wouldn't even call her a monster... there was something related to the word that made my head buzz. It rang a bell, evoking a memory... a story. I could remember an open book, with the drawing of a horrifying creature. Those are some concepts that I could immediately relate to the word "monster"... Fear, malice. Something waiting in the dark for the perfect moment to strike... to hurt. But those concepts had nothing to do with these creatures that I met. I didn't even want to call them monsters anymore... Toriel had many things to offer, things that were taken from me... but none of them harmful. Chara, instead... was the real monster. He was the one who, with a smile, waited to inflict damage on others relentlessly, without warning or reason. He was like a spider, drawing everybody to his web so that they could be within his reach. And I was just his puppet, an extension of himself... a body, a weapon, for he could not materialize on his own.  
All of these thoughts flooded my mind. I still felt guilty, because I couldn't free myself from his terrible grasp.  
There had to be something I could do... But I was exhausted, tired of crying ghostly tears, tired of watching. I didn't know how to fight it, how to make him go away. So in the meantime... I could do nothing but wait. 

We walked through the forest, and suddenly, I heard a branch snap. I would've turned, but Chara didn't, he just kept going, seemingly unaware of the sounds that began to take form all around us. Then, a shadow that could be seen from the corner of my eye. But Chara kept going. He went on and on, until we reached a bridge, and heard footsteps in the snow, behind us. That's when he froze, right where he was. The footsteps crept closer and closer still...  
"Human. Don’t you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand." A deep voice said.  
Chara, scared to death, turned around the best he could and stretched his trembling hand to the dark figure in front of us, just to receive a loud fart noise as the mysterious monster shook his hand. I laughed a bit (mentally, that is, as my body didn’t move a muscle), but Chara grunted in annoyance. "Come on" I thought. "It was at least a bit funny..." and I could see what seemed to be a big-boned skeleton, about 1.60 meters tall, wearing a light-blue hoodie, black sports pants and white sneakers. Marvellous sense of fashion. Looking at him closely, I could notice two little sparks in his eye sockets which made him look very much alive. I could also notice how he had an enormous grin on his face... which seemed to be incredibly fake. There was something about it, something about him. He had a big, round head, and his smile was plastered on it, from side to side, which didn't fit with the rest of his tired, sunken expression. It was odd, perplexing but interesting at the same time. I heard his laugh piercing my thoughts. 

"Hehehe... the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. It’s always funny." It said as Chara looked back, clearly not amused. "That’s, uh... your cue to laugh. Or, uh... to emote at all...?” Still no response. "Ok, that’s fine. Everyone’s got their own sense of humour. I’m Sans, Sans the skeleton. I’m actually supposed to be on watch for humans right now, but... y’know... I don’t really care about capturing anybody. Now my brother, Papyrus... he’s a human-hunting fanatic. Hey, actually, I think that’s him over there. I have an idea. Go through this gate thingy" Sans said, and Chara stared him back, not even moving an inch. "Yeah, go right through. My bro made the bars too wide to stop anyone" he insisted, and started walking towards us. Chara moved in order not to fall to the side of the bridge.

"Quick, behind that conveniently-shaped lamp". Chara lingered, and stared at him with his usual expressionless look. "Uh, okay... I guess you don’t have to." Suddenly a skeleton, about 1.80 meters tall and very thin, wearing a really funny suit and something resembling a red scarf appeared. "SANS!! Have you found a human yet!?" he yelled. I guess he was so tall he wouldn’t bother to look down. Couldn’t blame him, anyway. Monsters seemed to be very big creatures. "Yeah" Sans answered, immediately changing Papyrus’ expression. "Really!? Wowie!! Guess that’s settled!" he squaled as he ran away, just as fast as he came. 

Sans kept on grinning. "Guess that worked, huh?" he said, as Chara stared at him blankly. "Are you just gonna stare at me, or...?" and before Sans could finish, he walked away. Damn, I really liked the skeleton and Chara was being all rude. I was surprised he left the scene so quickly and didn’t try to kill him, anyway. Maybe he was having a change of mind?  
"Well, I’ll be straight-forward with you." Sans spoke before Chara could run away. "My brother would really like to see a human... so, you know, it’d really help me out if you kept pretending to be one." That said, he left. What did he mean by “pretending”? "But I am a human!" I thought, and to my annoyance, Chara laughed. Well, at least he seemed to be enjoying himself with this little remark.  
We came to a clearing and found a box. Chara triumphantly opened it, tossed the toy knife to the ground and put something that seemed to be some kind of tough glove in his hand. I felt a chill down my spine. He was not done killing yet.

Just as fast as I thought he would, he began looking for monsters once again. Killing was easier with that new weapon, it seemed. At this point I didn’t even care anymore. What could I do? It was turning me mad, seeing all those innocent beings being turned to dust, again and again, unceremoniously and without a trace of remorse. I felt extreme disgust, both at myself and Chara, as I sensed all of that dust falling on top of me, creating a thin layer on my head, hands, chest and shoulders. In the meantime, Chara seemed to be enjoying himself, humming and laughing as he walked through the now silent and abandoned forest, with his wicked, indelible smile of sick pleasure. 

In time, we came to another clearing, where I could see the skeleton brothers talking once again. It was really funny how Papyrus didn’t really notice a human standing in front of him, but Sans’ persuasion worked as a charm. He talked about puzzles and such, and left, running ahead of us. Sans, still grinning but clearly showing a copious amount of contempt in his eye sockets, simply said, unsurprised and in a menacing voice: "and you don’t even bat an eye, huh?", then left again, following his brother. But Chara kept walking. 

Along the way, we found many guard dogs wearing helmets and armour, but not even that could save them from the same fate many of their friends had suffered before. I stared, motionless, as Chara hurt a very kind snowman whose only wish was to see the world by tearing out big chunks of his body and ended up killing him too, making him crumble down to a small pile of snow.  
He kept walking East, and we eventually found the skeleton brothers again. I was happy to see them, but Chara just seemed bored. Papyrus began explaining something about a puzzle, but he didn’t even let him finish and kept on walking. Papyrus, visibly frustrated, left. Sans talked to us again as we walked past him, squinting his eye sockets at us (how could he even do that?). "It would make my brother happy if you played along" he remarked slowly, his tone getting creepier by the moment.

I didn’t even notice how much we walked. We encountered the skeletons many times, and Chara ignored their puzzles every single time. Sans stared back, still grinning (to please his brother, I suppose), with distrust clearly embodied in his eyes, trying to convince Chara of playing along every time, failing miserably. Chara found a more difficult creature to defeat, but ended up killing him too, muttering “stupid Jerry” with anger every time he hit him. An enormous dog and a cute dog couple was also defeated, and left me broken hearted as he whimpered his wife's loss, before Chara killed him too. I wanted him to stop. I wanted to make friends, to talk to the skeletons, to play along in the snow. Not even the cold wind seemed to be getting to me then. I just wanted to wake up from that horrible nightmare I was unwillingly forced into. 

We found the skeleton brothers one last time. And also, for the last time, Papyrus tried to make Chara play with him, but didn’t succeed. He didn’t lose hope though, he still had had a good time, and so he left, babbling about his friend who liked violence. Chara, annoyed with the presence of the skeleton brothers as usual, triumphantly crossed the bridge. Sans had a different plan though. He, too, for the last time, stopped us on our tracks.  
"Hmm... guess we didn’t need your help to have a good time after all. Say, I’ve been thinking. Seems like you’re gonna fight my brother pretty soon. Here’s some friendly advice: if you keep going the way you are now..." Sans paused, as he closed his eye sockets. Then, to my utter shock, he opened them again, empty this time, and said, with his characteristic grin still on his face: "you’re gonna have a bad time." And in the blink of an eye, he disappeared.


	4. Red, red snow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely people <3 soo... this chapter is quite short. Yeah. I regret nothing haha.  
> As always, thank you for reading. I promise that it will get better in time, because there are many things that I have thought about for this story. Stay determined! And feel free to comment and pinpoint mistakes or loopholes.

“Welcome to Snowdin”. That big, friendly sign was our welcome mat for the town in our sight. A beautiful, cosy little town, covered in colourful decorations... but as empty as it could be. I was glad, knowing that everybody had apparently left. Chara wasn’t, though. He went around every building, extremely angry, opening doors, shattering windows and stealing food and money everywhere he could, looking for someone to dust. The shop at the entrance proved to be useful, as Chara barged in, filled his pockets with gold and stole a bandana. He happily went out and then went along the way. Suddenly, he stopped on his tracks and smiled that wicked smile. At the foot of a big, Christmas tree right in the middle of the town, was an armless yellow monster. It was standing next to it, looking around and stomping his feet impatiently. Chara approached, hiding his hand behind his back. The monster smiled at us, full with innocence, as soon as it saw him.  
"Yo, everyone ran away and hid somewhere. Man, adults can be so dumb sometimes, ha-ha... Don’t they know we’ve got Undyne to protect us!?" Chara stared back, as his interest in killing the monster suddenly vanished. Something else had caught his eye, not too far from where we were. 

The small, yellow monster stayed where he was, shifting is weight from one feet to another. Chara, on the other hand, ignored him and walked to the other side of the town, where a snowstorm had began to form. It was extremely difficult to see and the cold was unbearable, but he kept going, visibly anxious, ignoring the cold, the ice and the wind. There, in the midst of it all, appeared a tall, thin figure... A figure I had seen not too long ago. Papyrus the skeleton. "Oh, no." I thought. "Oh, yes" I heard Chara mutter triumphantly. Naive, sweet Papyrus was the reason Chara had walked past everything. His energy and thoughts, I noticed, were focused on the friendly figure standing heroically ahead of us.

"Halt, human!" Chara laughed, and walked closer. "Hey, quit moving while I’m talking to you! I, The Great Papyrus, have some things to say. First: you’re a freaking weirdo! Not only do you not like puzzles, but the way you shamble about from place to place... the way your hands are always covered in dusty powder... It feels... like your life is going down a dangerous path." Chara gritted his teeth in annoyance, clutching his fist tightly. "However! I, Papyrus, see great potential within you! Everyone can be a great person if they try! And me, I hardly have to try at all! Nyeh heh heh heh!" 

Chara approached even further, his knuckles white by now. He took one step after another, dangerously slow. In my mind, I only wished Papyrus snapped out of his illusion and ran for his life... but he didn’t. My chest tightened, as I realised, once more, there was nothing I could do. I could feel sadness pooling inside of me, and could only wish with all my might that at least he would try to fight back...

"Hey, quit moving! This is exactly what I am talking about! Human! I think you are in need of guidance! Someone needs to keep you on the straight and narrow! But worry not! I, Papyrus... will gladly be your friend and tutor! I will turn your life right around!"  
Chara smiled devilishly, moving towards the skeleton once more, opening his arms in a friendly gesture. "Oh no, no, Papyrus, please, please, don’t be so naive" I thought. "Please see beyond this abomination!"

"I see you are approaching. Are you offering a hug of acceptance? Wowie! My lessons are already working! I, Papyrus, welcome you with open arms!"  
Said and done, my soul was taken out once again. Papyrus stretched his arms towards Chara... and with one swift blow, Papyrus was stricken, and I watched, horrified, as his head fell onto the snow. 

Body first, he started turning into dust. "W-well, that’s not what I expected... B-but still! I believe in you! Even if you don’t think so! I... I promise..." he said, and with a sad smile, vanished, leaving the red scarf laying neatly on top of the snow, as some sort of gruesome gravestone. His dust and scarf flew away, carried by the wind, while I gazed in horror as Chara laughed manically, cracked his knuckles and kept walking along the riverside, my body covered in even more dust. 

The snow fell heavily, and Chara looked back with that wicked grin on his lips, as I saw yet another familiar face. It was Sans, hugging his brother’s scarf tightly, and crying with rage. I was broken-hearted... my head was a mess... Sans' expression was truly terrifying... but Chara kept on laughing, mocking him. That was until Sans looked up at us, eye sockets blank as before, in a horrifying and menacing expression. We both shivered, full of fright, and Chara ran away as fast as he could, leaving the snow behind, and an extremely pissed off skeleton standing alone on the road, next to the river. I didn't even have time to grieve, because I knew for certain that this was maybe the only moment in this whole time that our minds were connected, thinking about the exact same thing: "run".


	5. Stars

The snow gradually disappeared, leaving nothing but dirt and mud on my feet. Chara stopped to recover, exhausted, looking behind his shoulder for any trace of Sans, but he wasn’t following us. So he sat down, looking at the river. I could hear water flowing, and the sound made me relax a little bit. I still couldn’t believe this... this hellish world that kept taking form all around me. Papyrus was dead. Papyrus was dead. Another poor innocent soul who offered me mercy... but found a grim ending instead. He, much like Toriel, didn’t deserve all of this... and I definitely didn’t deserve that wicked expression Sans gave us... those horrifying dark eyes... 

It was scary. I wished I was the one who died instead, but what could I do? When Chara slept, he forced me to sleep. I couldn’t regain control of my very own body... and I certainly couldn’t kick Chara out either. Anguished, my thoughts lingered, and I decided to take a good look at this new part of the Underground.  
At first, I thought that this was a small cave, but The Underground ended up being a huge cavern, with its own ecosystem and a very large population, it seemed. Only that, luckily, most of the population couldn’t be found. Most. My eyes began to close as a consequence of the exhaustion. Chara decided to crawl a little bit further, hiding behind a couple of big rocks near the road. He curled up and went to sleep. 

Waking up felt weird. There was no sunlight in The Underground, so we had no way of knowing for how long we had been sleeping or what time it was, but everything felt like it happened years ago. The ceiling of the cavern looked the same, impassible. Chara, meanwhile, stretched, and a small smile formed on his lips. He stood up and went on; following the only road we could take, away from the inevitable disaster. 

After a while, we reached what looked like another guarding post. Near it, the yellow monster from Snowdin stood, and smiled in recognition when he saw us. I guess he would’ve waved if he had hands.  
"Yo!" he said. "Are you sneaking out to see her too? Awesome... she’s the coolest, right!? I wanna be just like her when I grow up... Hey, don’t tell my parents I’m here. Ha-ha."  
Chara didn’t even look at him as he left. I, on the other hand, had lots of questions I wanted to ask to that friendly little monster. Where was everybody hiding? Why wasn’t he hiding, too? Who was the “she” he was talking about? But Chara didn’t want any of that. He wanted to keep on murdering. I was surprised he didn’t try to kill the yellow monster yet. I didn’t want to accept it, but it seemed like he had other plans in mind for him. 

He walked and walked, across a waterfall, through many other paths. Suddenly, a tall, armoured figure appeared. Chara ran and hid in a patch of tall grass. The figure seemed to notice a movement, but he stood still, making the figure doubt. Then, next to us something moved. Startled, the figure made a spear materialize in its hand. It looked and looked... but nothing else moved anymore. The figure sighed and left, its spear vanishing into thin air.  
Chara, relieved, walked out of the grass, and the yellow monster followed closely behind. Chara wasn’t very happy about that little creature invading his personal space and gambling the chances we had for the figure to find us.  
"Yo... did you see the way she was staring at you...? That... was AWESOME! I’m so jealous! She was just standing there waiting forever, and then you just...! C’mon! Let’s go watch her beat up some bad guys!" the kid ran away, tripped and fell on his face. If I had been in control of my own body, I would have helped him, but he got up and kept on running as Chara laughed. Well, at least I had one of my questions answered.

We walked through many other rooms, and, to my despair, found other monsters. As usual, Chara killed everybody who dared to cross our paths again and again. Finally, we entered a long corridor, where light-blue flowers with an unusual shape grew. The ceiling was full of little shining dots... they almost looked like stars. I noticed I had begun to feel homesick of a home I didn’t remember. Some flashing images went through my mind once in a while... a tall mountain, snow, trees, a lake, a starry night sky... but I still couldn’t remember much. I heard a sinister laugh coming out of my lips. "Forget about going home" it said. "You’re under my control now". That said he kept on walking. 

The path was small, and surrounded by water. It didn’t surprise me much, hence the appearance of every monster we had encountered. We eventually got to a long wooden bridge... Where She was waiting for us. A big, blue spear reeking of magic struck the wooden floor right in front of our noses. Chara saw her and began to run.  
She was inexhaustible, and threw hundreds and hundreds of magical spears at us, while Chara ran through a long path of wooden planks. Suddenly, the dirt path could be seen again, and he, just as before, plunged into a patch of grass head-first. At this point, I wasn’t very surprised to see the little yellow monster hiding with us once again. He made a huge, excited smile, as she entered the patch of long grass where we were hiding. 

Chara held his breath. She took one heavy step after another; she was very close... and ended up grabbing the monster by its cheek. She stared at him, expressionless... and for a few seconds I thought she had seen Chara. But she didn’t. She left the monster on the ground and walked away once again.  
When she was out of sight, the little monster and Chara ran to the right, out of the grass and opposite where we had come from. "Yo... did you see that!? Undyne just... touched me! I’m never washing my face ever again! Man, are you unlucky. If you were standing just a little bit to the left...! Yo, don’t worry! I’m sure we’ll see her again!" And the little monster ran away once more. 

Now I knew two things: one, she was called Undyne. Two, she was trying -very hard- to kill me. Chara chuckled and kept walking, ignoring my thoughts.  
This part of the cavern was way bigger than I thought it was going to be. Still, Chara seemed to know where to go, and was determined to kill everyone and everything. He walked and walked, ignoring many rooms just as in The Ruins, and we eventually came to a long pathway with a tall ceiling, where water fell like raindrops. There was an umbrella stand in the beginning of the corridor, with a small sign which said “Please take one”. Chara didn’t need any persuasion. The water had begun to mix with the dust, and was forming a kind of horrid mush on top of my body. Guess he wasn’t very fond of it, either. 

At some point, the little yellow monster kid found us again. He was standing on the side of the corridor, trying not to get wet. Unluckily for him, he couldn’t use an umbrella, for he didn’t have any arms to hold it with, so he seemed to be very pleased to see us.  
"Yo, you got an umbrella? Awesome!" He declared, as he ran and stood next to Chara as he walked. He went on and on for a very long time, talking about Undyne and how great she was. I was impressed, but Chara wasn’t. He was noticeably pissed off, for a change, as the little monster chatted away.

In the end, we reached a very steep ledge. Chara frowned, as there was no way up. He left the umbrella in the other umbrella stand (for the monsters who came from this way to the other, I supposed), and stared at it. The monster kid noticed, and kindly offered to help us up. Chara smiled, and as he climbed onto its shoulders, he kicked him roughly. The kid just shrugged, mentioning it as a joke, and left to find another way around. Chara chuckled.

His happiness didn’t last much, though, as Undyne found us again easily at the end of that road, where another wooden bridge began. This time, making sure she didn’t miss, the spears came from beneath the ground, making it very difficult for him to dodge. She definitely knew where to chase us, because this time, the persecution took place through an enormous labyrinth of wooden planks. Then... we came to the end of the road. Undyne triumphantly aimed her spear at us, and I felt Chara’s desperation forming beneath his wall of defiance. To my surprise, she wasn’t aiming at us. She was aiming at the floor. Three enormous spears fell from the sky, piercing and breaking the bridge, making us fall down. And as we fell, I couldn’t help but thank the universe, for this wicked adventure was finally over.


	6. Crystallize

‘It sounds like it came from over here... Oh! You’ve fallen down, haven’t you...? Are you okay? Here, get up... Chara, huh? That’s a nice name. My name is...’ 

My conscience woke up with Chara still controlling my body. Were we alive? It looked like it. I felt Chara’s uneasiness as he stood up. He had dreamed something, and this voice, which called for him, didn’t seem to make him very happy. The sound of running water could still be heard, and when he looked down, I noticed that, once again, a bed of big, yellow flowers had cushioned our fall. What the hell was up with these life-saving flowers anyway?

It was the first time that Chara had dreamed, and it left a queasy feeling of agitation inside of me. This gentle voice must have been someone he knew, maybe from the time when he was living here, in the Underground. It was impressive how much it shocked him, which made me think that maybe it wasn’t just a dream. Maybe it was a memory.  
Chara looked ahead, and sighed a little bit at the sight of water. There was no road, so he had to jump into the slightly dirty lake that we had ahead. We walked through the garbage-filled tunnel. There were piles of it, full of, what I recognized, were human items. Videocassettes, comics, old TVs, computers, food wrappers... everything ended up here, in those huge mountains. It made me feel disgusted at how everything was thrown away, even when it may have a second use. Even more, how could it be possible that everything ended up here? People threw some seriously weird stuff away. Humans seemed to be terrible, egoistic beings.

After a while, I could see the beginning of a pathway. Chara, who saw it too, began to run, happy to leave the cold, dirty water. Suddenly, a dummy, identical to the one we saw on The Ruins appeared in front of us. It had big eyes and his eyebrows indicated that he was definitely not in a good mood.  
‘You fool! You think you can hurt me? I am a ghost that lives inside a dummy. My cousin used to live inside a dummy, too. Until you came along! Not only did your actions cause them to leave their home... But now all of their neighbours are gone, too! Despicable. Despicable! DESPICABLE! You’re the worst person I’ve ever met! I’ve never been madder!’ the dummy said, as it turned a bright, bright red. ‘Guoh! My mannequin levels are going off the charts!’ and as it said so, there was a bright light, and the dummy was suddenly not mad anymore. 

‘This... This feeling...?’ It asked, and suddenly exclaimed, with a smile: ‘Eureka, eureka, eureka! Human, that moment of unbridled emotion... it allowed me to finally fuse with my body! I’m fully corporeal now! My lifelong dream, materialized! In return, I guess I won’t stump you. How’s that sound?’ The Dummy asked with a tremendous smile, and Chara answered with a grin and a furious hit. The dummy slowly turned into dust, and I sighed, taken aback by the sudden events that unleashed so quickly a few seconds ago.

Poor creature, it was a bit weird, but he didn’t deserve to die like this... it finally got what it always wanted, and Chara took its dreams away... just as he did with everyone else. It made me think of Papyrus, and how he spared him, how he spared us... because he thought that everyone had some good things inside. He vanished, just like that, too... his dreams vanishing with him. My guts churned. Even though it wasn’t exactly my fault, it still was. Maybe I wasn’t trying hard enough, maybe there was something else I hadn’t done... but I had no way to be sure, and no energy left to keep trying. Thus, I left Chara wander on his own, while I loathed myself a little bit more with every step he took. I, too, wanted to believe that everybody has some good in them, even if it was just a little bit. But this guy... he was sick. I seriously doubted that he had any trace of compassion inside. He must’ve been really hurt, a long time ago... but it was too late now. He came back to kill whatever hurt him. He came back to finish an unfinished business. He came back to destroy, and laugh as everything and everybody turned into gigantic piles of dust and nothingness. 

While all of these thoughts roamed about in my head, Chara walked around this new part of the cave. It was even taller than before, but not very wide. The water turned into a path once again, and Chara was relieved. The cave seemed to stretch for many more meters, and it was full of tiny waterfalls, which pissed Chara off every time they appeared before us.  
One part of the cave was very dark, and on the ground I could see more of those strange light blue flowers, and tiny light blue glowing mushrooms that lit up the right path formed by bioluminescent grass. It was a bit tricky to get through, but the path eventually narrowed and formed another, smaller and darker path. The room became gradually darker, and the mushrooms were replaced by beautiful purple crystals. Chara grunted in annoyance as he touched a lantern next to him and the room lit up. He was such a moody guy... I hated him to be inside of me, but he seemed to know how to get around. I would have probably taken far too long to find out what to do... and then again, this twisted little child lived here before. Of course he would have known. 

To my surprise, the room became dark again, and Chara found another lantern just in time. He did this a couple of times, until there were no more lanterns to touch. With my (his?) heart beating fast, he stepped into some place that looked like a long corridor. He walked, touching the walls around him, trying to find another source of light... but there was none. The corridor was pitch-black, darker than a starless night, for there were no shiny stars to look upon. Suddenly, we could see one of the light blue flowers in front of us, and heard it quietly whisper... ‘Behind you’.

The room lit up, and of course the mad lady with the magical spears was behind. She approached, slowly and silently, as Chara noticed there was nowhere to run. We could only fight. He gripped his weapon tightly, and the tall figure spoke.  
‘Seven. Seven human souls. With the power of seven human souls, our king Asgore Dreemurr will become a god. With that power, Asgore can finally shatter the barrier. He will finally take the surface back from humanity... and give them back the suffering and pain that we have endured. Understand, human? This is your only chance at redemption. Give up your soul... or I’ll tear it from your body’ Undyne said, as one of her magical spears appeared in her hand. Chara braced himself as she came closer still... as she charged at us.

My soul threatened to show up again, but the feeling was interrupted by a tiny, yellow monster yelling, running out of a patch of tall grass by the side of the corridor.  
‘Undyne! I’ll help you fight!’ He said, as he positioned himself between her and Chara. He saw us, then looked back at her, and finally looked at us once again. ‘Yo, you did it!’ he squealed enthusiastically. ‘Undyne is right in front of you! You’ve got front row seats for her fight!’  
The kid stopped, looked at Undyne and at us one last time, with a puzzled look. ‘Wait. Who is she fighting?’ Undyne’s spear disappeared. She quickly grabbed the kid by his cheek and ran away.


	7. Undyne The Undying

Chara took this opportunity to undo his footsteps, and he ran away into another corridor. This one was lit up, and had many little shiny star-like objects floating around, and many light blue flowers here and there. This corridor led to a narrow bridge, which Chara was eager to cross. He was relieved, because we seemed to be coming close to our destination, the end of this wet, humid and dark place. I must admit I, too, was relieved, as I could feel the surrounding conditions as well, and I must say that shorts are definitely not appropriate for snow and waterfalls. 

We were about to get to the other side, when another yell, much like the one we heard before, could be heard once again.  
‘Yo!’ Chara turned around, and I stared in horror as the little monster kid crossed the bridge and stood next to us. ‘Undyne told me to stay away from you. She said you... hurt a lot of people. But that’s not true, right!?’ he said, hope shining in his eyes. Chara, as usual, simply grinned.  
‘Yo... why won’t you answer me? And what’s with that weird expression...?’ Chara took a step forward. The kid’s expression changed from concern to fear. ‘Oh... oh man...’ terrified, he managed to stutter a response. ‘Y-you’d b-better stop r-right where you are... Cause if you w-wanna hurt anyone else... you... you’re gonna have to get through me, first! A-and...’ 

My soul was taken out of my body, and the queasy feeling came to me once again. Chara smiled, grabbed his weapon firmly in his hand... and finally muttered. ‘In my way’ he said, and directed a swift blow at him... which ended up hitting Undyne, who jumped right in front of him. The kid stared in horror.  
‘Undyne... you... you’re hurt...’  
‘Hurt? It’s nothing. Next time, listen when I tell you to leave, okay?’ she said to him, tenderly, in a sweet voice which made it difficult to believe she was the same person as before.  
‘Undyne, I...’ the kid hesitated. Undyne frowned, and with a firm voice, she exclaimed: ‘I’ll take care of this! Get out of here!’ Terrified, the kid ran away.  
Suddenly, Undyne’s body began to fade away. ‘Heh... “It’s nothing”... No... S-somehow, with just one hit... I’m already... already...’ Her figure became even more blurry, and her expression distorted with sadness. ‘Papyrus... Alphys... Asgore... Just like that I... I’ve failed you.’  
Undyne’s whole figure became hazy, and threatened to disappear. I stared in horror, remembering her words, herself talking to Papyrus... but then, suddenly, she spoke. Her face became visible again.

‘No... My body... It feels like it’s splitting apart. Like any instant... I’ll scatter into a million pieces... But deep, deep in my soul, there’s a burning feeling I can’t describe’. Undyne began to be corporeal once again. As she spoke, her body slowly re-built, and her expression became full of... ‘A burning feeling that won’t let me die. This isn’t just about monsters anymore, is it? If you get past me, you’ll... You’ll destroy them all, won’t you? Monsters, humans... Everyone... Everyone’s hopes, everyone’s dreams... vanquished in an instant. But I won’t let you do that. Right now, everyone in the world... I can feel their hearts beating as one. And we all have one goal. To defeat you.’ Chara gritted his teeth at her words. ‘Human. No, whatever you are! For the sake of the whole world... I, Undyne, will strike you down!’ As she spoke, her body was enveloped in a bright, white light. When it faded, her whole body had changed. New armour embraced her body. Her face was full of determination. She scoffed. ‘You’re gonna have to try a little harder than that!’ Undyne screamed, and my soul was taken out of my body. The battle had begun. 

As Undyne raised her arms, billions of spears appeared out of nowhere: surrounding us, coming from the ground, spinning in a circle, coming and going... all of them trying to hit the source of Chara’s power, my own soul, as well as my own body. It became a hit and run. Chara stroke Undyne, she endured the hits, and tried to hit the soul. Then Chara hit her again, and the cycle repeated endlessly. I don’t know for how long they were fighting. Her resistance was amazing, and Chara’s weapon was not strong enough. As I observed this scene in front of me, I secretly wished Undyne would hit me. I didn’t care anymore, I didn’t want to live. Chara needed a vessel, and if I were gone, then he wouldn’t be able to keep going. I wished, I hoped and waited. The wind was howling fiercely... but Undyne couldn’t keep up. Chara’s last blow was as brutal as fatal, filled with sick, blind fury.

‘Damn it... So even that power wasn’t enough? Heh...’ Undyne laughed, and made a huge grin, from fin to fin, showing all of her teeth. ‘If you think I’m gonna give up hope, you’re wrong. Cause I’ve got my friends behind me. Alphys told me that she would watch me fight you... And if anything went wrong, she would evacuate everyone.’ It was getting harder and harder for her to speak.  
‘By now she’s called Asgore and told him to absorb the six human souls...’ I stared in horror as my last hope, the great Head of the Royal Guard, Undyne... melted in front of me, smiling. ‘And with that power... This world will live on...!”  
Those were her last words before she finally faded away.


	8. Arachnofobia

Chara plastered his wicked grin on his face as I, once again, could do nothing, feeling my hope flying away, just like Undyne, the hero. Chara happily trotted away, into a cave inside of a tall, rock hill. The small cave was in fact another narrow path, like a bridge made of stone, with a river flowing below. On the distance, a big sign could be seen, though it was, in fact, turned off. I could only make out the phrase “WELCOME T”. I suddenly began to feel gradually warmer, as steam appeared from the end of the path we were walking on, which had a very bright light at the end. I seriously hoped it was “the light at the end of the tunnel”, but, as it had been proven to me throughout all this adventure, luck can always get worse. 

The first thing I saw was a sentry station, much like the ones we had seen before, and a longer, even narrower bridge which crossed from this side to another, with boiling hot lava waiting for us to fall. The warmth was much appreciated, though. If his balance was good enough, then we weren’t going to be turned into fire. If it wasn’t, well, maybe I could finally wake up from this crescent nightmare. The Underground seemed to become gradually taller after every area, and this was no exception. Chara, unlike me, was very relaxed, and proved my bad luck theory by crossing the bridge with no trouble whatsoever. 

At the other side, I could see a huge, white building with the word “LAB” above what seemed to be the entrance. Chara tried to continue north, but a force field prevented him from doing so. Scoffing, he walked away from the latter, towards the lab. 

The doors opened automatically. All the lights seemed to be lit, and a very calming aura emerged from inside, contrasting with the mess all around us. Piles of papers, action figures and unidentified objects adorned the floor. Suddenly, in front of a very big hole on the wall, I could see a big, square shaped machine with a microphone. And, to my surprise, it talked. Why was everything so weird around here?

‘Oh, there you are, you ugly little creature. You’ve made quite a name for yourself. Such infamy! I’m impressed. Oh, yes, if you’re looking for Alphys, she’s not here.’ “Alphys” I thought. The someone Undyne mentioned before. ‘While you were busy doing your... uh... thing, she was running around evacuating people to safety. Now they’re in a place where you’ll never get to.’ Chara’s anger began to increase with every word the robot said. ‘Deciding not to fight you... my, my, she really is the only smart one, isn’t she?’  
Chara, tired of listening, walked further. 

‘Oh? How sassy. You’re just itching to get your hands on me, aren’t you? Well, too bad! This world needs stars more than it needs corpses! Toodles!’ That said, quick as a flash, he accelerated and ran away. Or, better said, rolled away, for he had a wheel instead of feet.

Chara decided to tag along, running out of the lab too, but when we went out, the robot was far gone. This new zone seemed to be completely artificial, for its paths were long and narrow, made mainly of pipes and conveyor belts, which made walking around less exhausting. At least, if the robot was right, there shouldn’t be any more creatures to kill, so that kept my spirits a little bit high for the time being. But, once more, proving my luck theory, a couple of creatures began to appear once again. Chara was completely delighted. These monsters seemed to be a little more fun to kill, so he went on and on, turning them all to dust while he walked around. 

A couple of meters ahead, I could see some small squares, big enough for one to stand on top, with arrows changing the direction where they were pointing at. Chara stepped on one, and I was surprised to feel my body being lifted up into the air, and falling down where the arrow directed. Chara was pleased, and explored this new area, jumping from one side to another, finally finding a pan lying on the floor. He picked it up, looked at it and threw the glove he was previously using as a weapon into the magma. Then, he kept walking. 

More and more pipes were straightened on the path, and I could see some weird kind of machines scattered around on the walls, all seemingly harmless. Chara walked around, not worried at all, until we reached a big doorway, open and abandoned as everything else.

We went through when two, tall and dark, menacing armoured figures saw us. Surprised, one exclaimed: ‘...you’re here. So that means Undyne... she’s... Like, Undyne, we’ll avenge you!’ and pulled my soul out. The battle began, but ended swiftly, as they were weaker than they seemed. It only took Chara a couple of strikes, and they were gone. Filled with happiness, he went through one of the many other bridges, flying around by stepping in those weird mechanisms and a kitchen (who knows why the hell there was a kitchen in a place like that!), until we saw an enormous structure, far away, immersed in the magma. The view was breath taking, but Chara thought otherwise and kept walking, unimpressed, until we reached a lift. He quickly pressed the button for “Left Floor 3”, and the doors closed, swiftly taking us to our destination. 

Unsurprisingly, when the lift opened, there was... another pathway. This one, however, was more colourful than the others, and in the middle of it there was a table with a croissant and a donut. A wooden sign with the words “Spider Bake Sale” was next to it, but Chara ignored it and moved on to a labyrinth of flying, steam powered arrow thingies. No problem to him, though, for he found his way in a couple of seconds and went on through another door. This door, however, had a strange purple light flowing out of it, and when we entered, I could see the floor covered with spider webs and many little spiders hanging from the ceiling. 

Laughter was the first thing I could hear, interrupting the eerie silence around us. Then, faint little whispers.  
‘Did you hear what she said...?’  
‘They said a human wearing a striped shirt will come through’.  
‘I heard that they hate spiders’.  
‘I heard that they love to stomp on them’. The floor was getting stickier by the second.  
‘I heard that they like to take their legs off’. Chara visibly disturbed, found his pace being slowed down, until he couldn’t move anymore.  
‘I heard... that they have some awful taste’ a slender, purple figure exclaimed. It wore a beautiful dress, had six arms, five eyes and two legs, and it was grinning delightfully. She was also holding two teacups and two teapots in her hands.  
‘What a shame. A human comes through and they aren’t even fit to be eaten... Oh well! Rotten ingredients can always be discarded...’ And with a soft chuckle, it pulled out my soul. 

We couldn’t escape, for the floor was way too sticky, and those small spiders accompanying the spider-like figure were busy knitting more webs around my feet while she chuckled her speech away. I felt Chara’s nervousness building up.

‘Don’t look so blue, my deary...!’ she exclaimed with a smile, as she threw a purple liquid from the teapots to my soul. Waiting for it to hurt, I was extremely surprised to see that it didn’t, but turned my soul from red to purple, and formed strings which decreased its movement.  
‘I think purple is a better look on you!’ she said, as Chara pondered, thinking about the possibilities. We were trapped in a strange, purple web, but he could move his arms. So, before she could do anything, he hit her as hard as he could. It proved to be extremely efficient... for she faded away, eyes wide open in surprise, teacups and teapots shattering on the floor. 

Chara smiled. A small spider went to the place the spider-girl was before, and then left. Chara proceeded to cut the spider webs away, failing to notice the tiny spider monster leaving a flower where she used to stand. My heart broke. The spider-girl seemed to be very kind and fun to be around... and the tiny spiders were her friends, mourning her quick and merciless fall. They all ran away when he was done cutting the strings, leaving the room empty.


	9. Death by Glamour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is definitely the worst battle ever, but it had to be done <3  
> This chapter is kinda short, but not so bad I guess?  
> Hope you enjoy it anyway :3 comments are very welcome.

We walked out of the room and through another corridor, until we reached a restaurant-like structure with the letters “MTT” above the door. On the way, Chara saw a dark alley with a huge red arrow painted on the floor pointing towards it, so he figured he should go check it. Maybe there was something interesting inside. There he found what looked like an abandoned shop. He looked around through the garbage and found a cowboy hat and a gun. He took both of them, a couple of coins and left, ignoring the note written in fancy gel pens that was left on top of what seemed to be the counter. 

Next, he went inside the building and was surprised with a big bright hotel lobby, which had a fountain that dropped water to the floor. He basically ignored everything, as usual, and walked straight through a door with the word “CORE” written above. 

Yet another bridge was in our way, and led us to what seemed to be the metallic structure we saw a long time ago. “Does this freak ever get tired?” I thought, as Chara seemed to be restless. No attacks had harmed him anymore, but walking all of this distance without sleeping was, indeed, something troublesome. I heard him chuckle. ‘I am not tired. I am determined’.  
His twisted, devilish voice coming out of my mouth startled me. ‘Don’t worry, we are almost there’. 

The structure was indeed big, and light-blue in colour. It seemed to have many other paths, but Chara headed straight for the lift right in the middle of the room. When we reached the top, he was relieved to find monsters who, instead of running away, decided to fight. I sighed, as I saw him lick his lips and hit every single one, turning them to dust. I already had a thick layer of those poor souls all over my body, and it didn’t go away with movement. It stuck to my skin, as a grim reminder of these terrible things I was -but wasn’t- doing. 

He took his time, running around the corridors, humming a lovely little tune, discordant with everything he did and represented. Here and there, fearsome brave monsters appeared, and he quickly disposed of them, in the blink of an eye, his smile growing bigger and bigger with every kill.

I wanted to close my eyes and die. I tried to cry, to snap him out of his murderous rampage... but couldn’t. Once more, I was left with no alternative. Stupid Chara could think all he wanted and I had no way of knowing, but on the other hand, he could hear my thoughts. At this point, I knew he was enjoying the distress I felt, and he laughed whenever I felt anguished for any of the lost souls... he had killed so many I lost count. I wanted a way out of this nightmare, a way out of this gruesome reality that engulfed me... but even the best solution was taken from me. And I was forced to sit and watch while he not only enjoyed the little creatures’ suffering, but also enjoyed destroying myself from within. I guessed that at one point, he would kick me out of my own body or even drive me so mad I wouldn’t have a conscience anymore... but there was no way to know. I could only wait and hope for a miracle. 

Chara merrily checked every hall, every corner of the Core for any resilient survivors... but nobody came. Satisfied enough, he moved on to the room that was next to the lift.  
We were greeted by a small, dark room, and the robot we saw before standing in the middle. 

‘My, my, so you’ve finally arrived’ he said, in a grave voice. ‘After our first meeting, I realised something ghastly. You’re not just a threat to monsters... but humanity as well. Oh, my, that’s an issue. You see, I can’t be a star without an audience, and besides... there are some people I want to protect’. Chara smiled and took a step forward.  
‘Ha, eager as always... But don’t touch that dial. There is something you haven’t accounted for. As any true fan would know, I was first accounted as a human eradication robot. It was only after becoming a star that I was given a more... photogenic body. However, those original functions have never fully been removed... Come any closer and I will be forced to show you my true form!’

Chara’s grin intensified as he took another step. ‘Cut the crap and start the show, then’.  
‘Fine then! Ready!? It’s show time!’  
There was a bright flash of light, and when it faded I could see the robot had transformed completely.  
He was shaped like a human now, with legs and arms, big wings and a cannon for his right hand. He was smiling very confidently as he braced himself for battle. Alphys made a good job. He scoffed at Chara, and he smiled back in a devilish fashion. He pointed his cannon directly at my soul, but Chara shot first, aiming at the middle of his body, where a heart-shaped piece was located. 

An explosion sound could be heard, and the robot opened his eyes widely. He offered Chara a small smile. ‘Ha... guess you don’t wanna join my fan club...?’  
Those were his last words before he exploded and scattered metallic pieces all around the room.


	10. Brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're approaching the Judgement Hall *megalovania intensifies*.  
> As usual, thanks for reading and for your support <3 you guys are great.

After the room, there was another long corridor. This one, however, led directly to yet another lift. Chara quickly went inside, pressed the only button and the lift started to move. I could feel Chara’s excitement filling my body up. 

It took a while, but it finally arrived to its destination. When the doors opened, I was welcomed with a wonderful sight: a gray, tall castle, built with stones. An enormous city could be seen from where I was standing. It was a wonderful sight... many buildings, small towers, squares... but nobody home. I wondered how different The Underground might have looked like with people running around and about; with the lights of the buildings on, smiles, laughter and conversations... but it was all just a distant dream now.  
Chara stopped and looked at the scenery below with a little smile. He took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, nostalgia and remembrance filling my body. Careful not to fall down, he approached the edge of the wall. He gripped it, and screamed out every bit of air I had in my lungs like a maniac. He laughed and laughed until he couldn’t anymore, while he triumphantly declared: ‘I am back’.

As I shivered in fear, he walked away through the wall, when he finally reached an entrance. I was shocked. There was a little house at the end of the road... a house identical to Toriel’s. Sensing my distress, he laughed again. ‘Let me show you around’ he said, as he entered the house. 

It was indeed a replica of Toriel’s home, but this one was less colourful, and full with those yellow flowers that cushioned my fall twice. He first went to the left, heading for the living room and the kitchen. The chimney was not on. Suddenly, the stupid flower appeared once more, with his huge smile. ‘Howdy, Chara! You finally made it home. Remember when we used to play here? Boy, today’s gonna be just as fun!’ he laughed as his faced distorted into that wicked smile he had. “We?” I thought. Did he just say we?” Chara walked away. 

The flower burrowed itself into the ground and appeared in front of Chara a little further. ‘I remember when I first woke up here, in the garden. I was so scared... I couldn’t feel my arms or my legs. My entire body had been turned into a flower! “Mom! Dad! Somebody help me!” I called out. But nobody came.’  
Chara entered the kitchen and opened the fridge. He seemed very disappointed. ‘No chocolate’, he said. Sighing, he closed the door, and took a green key that was lying on top of the counter. 

Chara then went straight to the right, to the corridor with the rooms. He went through the first one, where a cosy room with two beds awaited. He moved around, touching and looking at everything with a little smile. ‘My bed...’ he said as he touched the soft fabric on top. ‘His bed...’ he said as he moved to the other side of the room.  
In the end, he went to the corner of the room, where two boxes waited. He opened the first one, and found a locket. He took it and put it around his neck, saying ‘right where it belongs’. Then, he moved onto the next one, and to my utter horror, I could see an enormous knife, which he quickly took. He admired his looks on its reflection. ‘Here we go’. 

He left the room once again, and I was surprised to see him heading directly to the end of the hall, where a green key waited on top of a cabinet. He went there and tried to take it when the flower appeared once more. 'Eventually, the king found me, crying in the garden. I explained what had happened to him... then he held me, Chara. He held me with tears in his eyes, saying “there, there everything’s going to be alright”. He was so... emotional. But for some reason... I didn’t feel anything at all.’ 

Chara ignored him, took the key and walked away, back to the hall. He unlocked the two big padlocks and began to walk down the stairs. When we reached the basement, Flowey appeared... again. He was determined to make Chara listen to him. ‘I soon realised I didn’t feel anything about anyone. My compassion had disappeared! And believe me, it’s not like I wasn’t trying. I wasted weeks with that stupid king, vainly hoping I would feel something. But it became too much for me. I ran away from home. Eventually, I reached the ruins. Inside, I found her, Chara. I thought of all people, she could make me feel whole again. She failed. I realised those two were useless. I became despondent. I just wanted to love someone. I just wanted to care about someone. Chara, you might not believe this... But I decided it wasn’t worth living anymore. Not in a world without love. Not in a world without you. So I decided to follow in your footsteps! I would erase myself from existence. And you know what? I succeeded. But as I left this mortal coil I started to feel apprehensive. If you don’t have a soul, what happens when you...?’ He made a pause, Chara finally paying attention to him. 

‘Something primal started to burn inside of me. “No!” I thought. “I don’t want to die!” Then I woke up, like it was all just a bad dream. I was back at the garden. Interested, I decided to experiment. Again and again, I brought myself to the edge of death. At any point, I could have left this world continue without me, but as long as I was determined to live... I could go back. Amazing, isn’t it? I was amazed, too. At first, I used my powers for good. I became “friends” with everyone. I solved all their problems flawlessly. Their companionship was amusing... for a while. As time repeated, people proved themselves predictable. “What would this person say if I gave them this? What would they do if I said this to them?” Once you know the answer, that’s it. That’s all they are. It all started because I was curious. Curious what would happen if I killed them. “I don’t like this” I told myself. “I’m just doing this because I have to know what happens”. What an excuse! You of all people must know how liberating it is to act this way!’ Chara stared at him, expressionless. He bit his lip and walked past Flowey once more. He, too, followed through the tunnel into a new wall of the castle.

‘Nowadays, even that’s grown tiring. You understand, Chara. I’ve done everything this world has to offer. I’ve read every book, I’ve burned every book. I’ve won every game, I’ve lost every game. I’ve appeased everyone, I’ve killed everyone. I’ve seen it all. But you, you’re different. I never could predict you. When I saw you in the Ruins, I didn’t recognise you. I thought I could frighten you, and then steal your soul. I failed. And when I tried to load my save file, it didn’t work. Your determination, somehow, it’s even greater than mine! I just have one question, Chara... how did you get back to the Ruins from here? Wait, I know. She must have taken you when she left, and decided to give you a proper burial, rather than hanging out in the basement forever. But why, then? What made you wake up? Did you hear me calling you...?’ 

Flowey sighed. ‘It doesn’t matter anymore. I’m so tired of this. I’m tired of all these people, of all these places. I’m tired of being a flower. There’s just one thing left that I want to do. Let’s finish what we started. Let’s free everyone. Then, let’s let them see what humanity is really like! That despite all... this world is still “kill or be killed”. Then? Well, I had been entertaining a few ways to use that power. But seeing you here changed my mind. I think if you’re around... Just living in the surface world doesn’t seem so bad. We don’t even need to leave to get them this time. The king has six of them locked away. I’ve tried hundreds of ways to get him to show me them... but he just won’t. Chara... I know he’ll do it for you. Why am I telling you all of this? I’ve told you before. Even after all this time... You’re still the only one that understands me. You won’t give me any worthless pity! Creatures like us... wouldn’t hesitate to kill each other if we got in each other’s way. So that’s... so that’s why...’ 

Flowey’s voice faded a little. Chara smiled for the first time throughout the whole monologue. I was confused... it was too much information. There was nothing to over think. If what Flowey said was true... then Chara lived with him, they knew each other and Flowey loved him too. But why did he talk about leaving the place before? Wasn’t there a barrier? And he seemed to be very fond of Chara despite everything. This, however, I intuited was not going to last much longer, and Flowey seemed to feel it too. I began to shiver once more, frightened. 

‘What... what is this feeling...?’ he asked. ‘Why am I shaking...? Hey, Chara, no hard feelings about back then, right?’ He stepped further, slowly, licking his lips. ‘H-hey, what are you doing!? Back off!’ Chara shoved his knife at Flowey, and he hid into the ground. He appeared a little further, with a terrible expression on his face. ‘H-hey, I’ve changed my mind about all this. This isn’t a good idea anymore. Y-you should go back, this place is fine the way it is!' Chara stared at him, wickedness fixed on his face. 'S-stop making that creepy face! This isn’t funny! You’ve got a sick sense of humour!’ he said, and Chara tried to hit him once again. Flowey left, and this time, he did not come back.


	11. The Judgement

Chara turned right, into another part of the building. A great, long hall in a medieval style welcomed us. It had enormous, yellow stained glass windows, which filled the room with a bright light, giving it a solemn aura. It was a peaceful place...  
Chara smiled blissfully. It seemed like it held precious memories for him, as he slowly walked to the end of the hall, enjoying this: the void between reality and illusion. The reality of all the countless souls that fell at his command and the illusion that everything would be over soon... that I would wake up and be back at the home I didn’t remember, but deeply yearned. 

What was this? It was a mixture of many different feelings, pooling and flooding my mind as Chara remembered. For the first time, I could see what he was thinking. Many images passed by, like a movie playing through. First, a kind, small goat monster offering help appeared. Then, Toriel and a bigger goat monster taking Chara’s hand could be seen. Chara and the small goat playing in a beautiful garden, Chara and the small goat drawing, eating chocolate, fooling around with a video camera... smiling. One by one, each after each, scene by scene, it all became clear. The small goat was Flowey. Chara was adopted by Toriel and the other great goat. Chara lived with them... as a family. 

Another flashback came to me. The word “heaven” came to mind, and a feeling of tranquillity, laughter and happiness... which broke when the bells tolled. Guarding the end of the hall, a figure stood, away from the light. Chara stopped on his tracks, expressionless, grabbing the knife tightly between his fingers. The figure stepped into the light, and I was horrified when I realised who was the last guard, the sentinel... death itself. It was Sans. 

‘Heya’ he said, with his enormous grin and his funny voice. ‘You've been busy, huh?’  
Chara smirked as a response.  
‘So, I've got a question for you. Do you think even the worst person can change, that everyone can be a good person, if they just try?’ Chara stepped forward, anxious.  
‘All right, well, here's a better question. Do you wanna have a bad time?’  
Sans eye sockets went blank. He kept grinning, giving him a horrifying expression. I gasped in surprise, but Chara seemed even more eager.  
‘Cause if you take another step forward... you are really not going to like what happens next.’  
Grinning back defiantly, Chara took another step forward.  
‘Welp, sorry, old lady. This is why I never make promises.’ 

Sans pondered. He closed his eyes, stood still, and took his time.  
‘It's a beautiful day outside. Birds are singing, flowers are blooming... on days like these, kids like you...’  
The familiar feeling of my soul being taken out filled my body with despair. Chara was not going to live. We were not going to live. Sans was the reaper. And this judgement hall was going to be our grave.  
‘Should be burning in hell.’

Sans’ left eye glowed with a bright, blue flame. My soul turned from red to blue. As he raised his hand, he lifted me up into the air and let me fall to the ground, where dozens of bones emerged and plunged into my body. I saw blood covering the yellow floor tiles, gushing from the wounds made by the enormous bones that fiercely and painfully pierced every bit of my body, glistening with the light coming from the windows. The pain was so great it became an indescribable feeling... but brought me a strange sense of peace and realisation. It would soon be over. Chara would be dead too, and I was going to disappear. The other monsters could use my soul to break the barrier and be free, and then everything wasn’t going to end up so badly. Maybe this way I could forgive myself for not being strong enough... for not being able to save them. 

Sans stepped forward, unperturbed, his eye flaring with rage. He summoned a group of skeletal beings, which waited for his command. They were all facing me.  
‘Get dunked on, you gross piece of garbage.’  
The beings opened their jaws and shot a blue laser at me. It burned my skin and my bones down to a black crisp.  
My conscience began to fade, and everything became darker and darker. I smiled as my eyes shut, as Sans’ shape dissipated and distorted in the wings of death.  
‘Thank you’ I thought, as he stared at me, his everlasting grin fading away too.  
Then the silence came.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah... cliffhanger!!! :D  
> Don't hate me, I love you.


	12. Hell

‘You’re going to be alright! Chara, stay determined...’

First, there was the voice. A voice I couldn’t recognize, deep and worried, telling Chara to keep holding on. Then, there was the light. A bright light at the end of a tunnel. Too exhausted to reach, I dozed off as the light crept closer and closer... and when I opened my eyes... I was back at the hall. Chara was still controlling me. And Sans was waiting at the end. 

He looked at me, amused. ‘Heh, I thought this could happen. Heya, you look frustrated about something. Guess I'm pretty good at my job, huh?’ Sans smiled. Chara gripped his knife... and I froze. My soul was taken out.

Chara ran to Sans, only for him to activate his powers once more. We were lifted mid-run, thrown back to floor and pierced with sharp bones. No mercy. My body, limp, with wounds all over, oozing with blood, was left there: mid-air, supported by the bones, sliding slowly to the floor as gravity did its work and red, watery fountains ran through the floor. Sans hummed, and summoned the skeletons. He stared at me as I was lying on the ground, as I heard Chara curse. Everything hurt. It seemed like every single bone in my body was broken. I watched and felt my blood pouring from every wound, as my heart clenched. I could feel Chara’s rage building up. This was going to be the end, again. And I hoped it would be the last time. 

‘Goodbye, kid.’ Sans said, and as the blue lasers pierced and burned through my soul and body, Chara screamed. 

I don’t know how long it took, but I found myself in the hall for a third time. I began to shiver. If this was going to happen every time I died... then I’d rather be locked away in a cage and never see the light of day. I wanted to cry, to plead for mercy, for help; to kick Chara out of me... maybe Sans would understand... If only I could talk to him... but my host thought otherwise.

Chara’s face distorted with wrath, as Sans winked with a grin and looked at him.  
‘Hmm, that expression... That's the expression of someone who's died twice in a row. Suffice to say, you look really... unsatisfied, but all right. How 'bout we make it a third?’ 

Summoning his magic, he lifted his hand a third time, lifting my body as well. But this time, Chara was prepared. He braced for the fall, making it almost harmless. Before the bones could appear from the ground, he jumped and dodged them, moving to the other side. Sans grinned in amusement and Chara scoffed. His efforts were not enough, as the skeletal creatures emerged from the shadows and blasted death once more, burning my skin and muscles and turning me to a black coal. My conscience faded. 

‘Hmm, that expression... That's the expression of someone who's died thrice in a row. Hey, what comes after "thrice," anyway? Wanna help me find out?’  
Chara was determined to kill Sans. I, on the other hand, was determined to run. My spirits alone were not enough to fight Chara’s urge for killing him. Once again, like many times before, I fought. I talked to him, tried to reason with him. But he wouldn’t leave my body... not even with the knowledge that every time Sans killed us, we would be back, and the story would repeat itself. I don’t know what sort of demon he was... but he certainly was good at keeping up. 

I lost count. I don’t know how many times we died and came back, and Sans didn’t bother to keep counting. He knew. He knew that we were coming back from the dead. And he kept torturing us. Unlike the other monsters, he didn’t only focus on my soul... he focused on hurting my whole body. On breaking every bone, on taking my last breath. On tearing every bit of skin in my body... on making me bleed and tearing my muscles apart. Because that was his whole goal... to make me suffer everything Chara made me do a thousand times worse. 

Chara was a quick learner. He came to know every gesture Sans made before attacking, and it made the task of dodging the bones and lasers easier. Not easy enough though, for sometimes Chara wasn’t quick and couldn’t dodge, or Sans would suddenly throw our bodies around like a bouncy ball, breaking my bones. Thousands of scenarios spread, so many I have no idea how many times Sans split my soul in half. I only remember blood, pain, laughter... Sans’ blazing eye, his everlasting grin plastered on his white skull. Chara’s rage building up, making him even more determined to kill him. To come back. Every time we came back, our body was rested, as good as new, with no scars, with its full power. And every time we died... I wished I would stay that way. 

Chara fought for hours, maybe days. I ended up in a trance, watching without feeling anything anymore. There was nothing to feel, only emptiness. Only the hellish consequences of me falling down the rabbit hole. 

Sans eventually began to talk, as a prize for Chara’s endurance. Every time Chara tried to strike, he dodged. For a lazy skeleton, he sure was swift. Sometimes, he would disappear and appear behind us, hitting us with one of his attacks from a different angle. He would just wink: “shortcuts” he would say. He spoke about time anomalies, results of Flowey’s experiments I supposed. He dodged and dodged, tried to make us stop. But Chara was restless. His desire to kill was greater. But Sans’ desire to kill us was even greater. 

Sans made thousands of bones appear from the ground. Chara ran, dodged and jumped all over them, getting closer to Sans, who teleported away. He summoned the laser-shooting skulls, which chased Chara around, even further away. Then, Sans’ flame grew bigger, and with swift motions, he plunged us into the air and threw my body around the hall. Left, right, up, down, up, left, right again... tirelessly, again and again. This was the longest we had survived the madness... but it seemed like it would end up and reset soon.

He let us fall, and cornered us by surrounding our tired body with bones, creating a sort of cage. It didn’t matter anymore, for we couldn’t move. We were so tired that our eyes closed.  
His flame died out, and suddenly, he spoke.  
‘Sounds strange, but before all this I was secretly hoping we could be friends. I always thought the anomaly was doing this because they were unhappy, and when they got what they wanted, they would stop all this... and maybe all they needed was... I dunno, some good food, some bad laughs, some nice friends... but that's ridiculous, right? Yeah, you're the type of person who won't ever be happy.’  
He walked, slowly reaching us with every step.  
‘You'll keep consuming timelines over and over, until... well. Hey, take it from me, kid. Someday... you gotta learn when to quit. And that day is today. Because... you see... all this fighting is really tiring me out. I know I can't beat you. One of your resets... you're just gonna kill me. So, uh, I've decided... it's not gonna reset, ever. I'm just gonna keep having this one until you give up. Even if it means we have to stand here until the end of time. Capiche?’ 

Sans grinned in triumph, and grabbed the bars of the newly-made jail, staring at my worn and torn up body lying in the crimson stained floor tiles.  
‘You'll get bored here. If you haven't gotten bored already, I mean. And then, you'll finally quit.  
I know your type. You're, uh, very determined, aren't you? You'll never give up, even if there's absolutely no benefit to persevering whatsoever. No matter what, you'll just keep going. Not out of any desire for good or evil... but just because you think you can. And because you "can"... you "have to". But now, you've reached the end. There is nothing left for you now. So, in my personal opinion... the most "determined" thing you can do here is to completely give up and do literally anything else.’

When I heard his words, I felt something crack inside of me. I didn’t feel the strange weight I did before... and I didn’t feel Chara’s conscience.  
My whole body hurt, for sure. So even thinking about trying to move filled me with desperation. But I had to do it.  
First, I tried to move my finger. I couldn’t. But then, I opened my eyes, slowly but surely. It was definitive. Chara was not me anymore. 

I looked at Sans, and he looked back at me, doubt filling his skull. His grin disappeared. His eyes widened. I tried to talk.  
My mouth opened just a millimetre. I could taste blood in my mouth. I coughed and spat. Sans kept staring, his eye sockets full with suspicion. I could finally feel everything that had been done to me.  
‘H-help...’  
Sans came even closer, with worry in his eyes.  
‘Who...? Who are y-’ 

And that’s all I could do before I felt Chara taking control of my body. Before he grabbed the knife and out of pure will power finally cut Sans. He fell on the floor with the impact.  
His eye sockets widened once more, and then his face distorted with pain. My heart sank, but I wasn’t even surprised. What was I thinking? That he would mercifully leave me on his own account? No. It was just another one of his twisted, sick plans. You can say whatever you want about him... but you can never doubt that he was as evil as he was smart. 

Sans made a little grin as he began to bleed. He was the first and only monster I ever saw that could do that. He looked at me filled with disgust and sadness.  
‘You nearly got me there, kid. So... guess that's it, huh? Just... don't say I didn't warn you.’  
Sans stood up. ‘Welp. I'm going to Grillby's.’ He crawled in the best way he could until he hid behind a pillar, out of my sight. I heard him sigh faintly, and then whisper... “Papyrus, do you want anything?” until I heard the soft sound of dust falling on the floor. 

Chara laughed manically. He laughed louder and harder, in a distraught concert that resonated through the entire hall. ‘I did it’ I heard him say. ‘Goodbye, smiley trash bag. Now I can finish what I never ended, this time without Asriel.’  
I had had enough of this freak. All of this death, all of this suffering... this world could not end like this. I had to do something. Sadness made way for wrath. And wrath made way for determination. 

‘WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS!?’ I screamed inside of my head. ‘Stop ignoring me for once! What is wrong with you!? Why wouldn’t you stop!?’  
Chara grabbed the knife tightly and looked at his reflection. I could see through his eyes, see my bleeding, bruised and broken face... but my lips curled in the creepiest grin I had ever seen. This wasn’t me. I never was myself.  
‘You really want to know, huh? Then, let me show you.’ 

Chara started to remember. Once again, like a movie, flashbacks came and went in my mind. I could sense his sadness, his desperation. I saw a small village, and a young boy with cuts all over his wrists. I saw bruises, heard adults screaming. I felt rejection, hate. Tears.  
I saw a young boy climbing a tall mountain... I saw a young boy throwing himself from the heights in an attempt to run from himself. I saw a young boy surviving the fall.

‘Do you understand now?’ He said, as I froze in terror. ‘Those people ruined my life. Humanity ruined my life. Why would I apologise for being a monster... if they never apologised for turning me into one!? I had the opportunity and I took it. Now, I will show them... show them what determination can do!’ He roared with laughter as he steadied himself onto his feet. 

My heart was devastated. ‘Being hurt does not give you the right to hurt others, Chara... You had a new family, and friends... you knew these people. You are no monster. You are a human’ I said, as I felt my face soaked with my own tears. What was happening? I felt pleasant warmth starting to form in my soul. My whole body began to glow as emotions overtook every inch of my body.  
‘I WILL NOT LET YOU HURT ANYONE ELSE EVER AGAIN!’ 

A bright, white light engulfed my body. And then, everything turned into darkness.


	13. Wings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not posting regularly :c I won't be able to do it in a long time, but I'll post as soon as I can :3  
> Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!  
> Thanks for reading

I slowly opened my eyes, just enough to see darkness surrounding me, and a bright light at the end of a very long tunnel. I closed my eyes, sleepy and sore. Then I opened my eyes again... and realised I had been sleeping on a bed of big, yellow flowers. I looked up, not being able to move any muscle.  
I had fallen through an enormous hole, and the flowers had, somehow, cushioned my fall.  
I was glad; at this point it didn't feel like anything was broken. Still, I wasn't in the mood for moving yet. 

What had happened? I couldn't remember. I couldn't even remember falling down. I couldn't remember anything. 

Starting to feel anguished, I decided to stand up and figure out what to do. I sat up, and brushed my hair with my fingers. Suddenly, it all came back to me. Memories. Memories from a not-so-distant past. A chill went down my spine. It had been real, right...?  
I moved my fingers, one by one. It was me. I was myself again! I wanted to scream and jump out of joy, but all of my body ached. I was back at the entrance... but it didn’t matter, because if time went back... then I could do everything again. But this time, I could do it right. 

Thrilled, I stood up the best I could, and headed towards the big entrance, into The Ruins. There, I could see a familiar figure standing in front of me.

‘Flowey!’ I screamed, delighted to see him unharmed.  
The flower squinted his eyes at me in the dark, focusing, and then said with a pleased smile: ‘Really, you piece of garbage. Killing again, this time, too?’  
I shook my head. He smiled in disbelief.  
‘So, where’s Chara?’  
‘I think he disappeared. For good, this time, I hope.’ Flowey’s expression sunk. And suddenly, it turned into a horrifying grin.  
‘It was you, wasn’t it? You hurt him. YOU HURT HIM!’  
His screaming frightened me to the core, and I felt dread all over me again as my soul was taken out. I had no idea what to do.  
‘What did you do to him, why did you take him away from me!?’  
The little white bullets appeared, forming a ring around my soul. ‘Give him back. Or die.’

I looked at my surroundings, and discovered a stick lying on the floor next to me. I quickly took it, and pointed at Flowey with it, not really sure about what to do next.  
He laughed hysterically at the sight of it. ‘You cannot harm me, human. You haven’t got the guts.’ 

As the bullets crept closer, I prayed that Toriel would come to save me, like last time. I braced myself for Flowey’s attack, trying to dodge it the best I could. It was a hard thing to do, because I could move my soul and my body separately, and my soul couldn’t move as much as my body could. It actually felt like it had its own limits in front of my body. Unlike Sans, though, Flowey was aiming right at my soul and not my body. That would kill me instantly.  
‘Die.’

I closed my eyes, waiting for the impact... but I only heard Flowey screaming. I opened my eyes, slowly, just to see a worried but smiling Toriel standing in front of me.  
‘Hello, are you alright? You must be so lost and confused... Ah, do not be afraid, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of The Ruins. I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down. You are the first human to come here in a long time. I will do my best to protect you during your time here. Come! I shall guide you through the catacombs.’

She waved her paw at me, indicating me to follow her, which I did happily. It was extremely strange to walk on my own again, as if I were learning to do it for the first time. I tried not to lose my balance as I trotted towards the entrance of the corridor with the buttons. Toriel moved and opened the door like she did the first time, smiling at me, while she repeated her speech in the exact same way. The déjà vu feeling was particularly intense with her, because unlike Flowey and Sans, she didn’t seem to recognise me, or remember these things happening. I looked at her, my smile full of tranquillity, relieved to see her unharmed. I payed attention to her while she explained how to move along the ruins, because this time I was on my own and really needed to focus on these mechanisms.

Fortunately for me, she had made it easier by labelling those switches that I had to press. I did so, and she congratulated me with an enormous smile.  
Then, we moved onto the end of the corridor, where the dummy I saw before stayed still. I frowned and concentrated, as she explained how to avoid the conflict. This time, I was determined not to harm the dummy in any way. So, I stood in front of it and refused to battle. My arms hung down and I stared at its eyes, the resolution of staying there until it was okay to go on flooding from my insides. I spared it, and waited. 

Nothing happened, so I wondered if I had done something wrong. Suddenly, the dummy floated away. I was speechless. Wasn’t it just an inanimate thing? I looked at Toriel, and she looked at me with an unexplainable ‘what the hell’ face. She stood there, silent, looked on the direction the dummy left and then smiled at me once again. ‘The next room awaits!’ she said, and I followed, confused. Maybe next time I could get it right? 

We went on to the next corridor, and I was frightened by the sudden appearance of a weird kind of frog, the same one that appeared the last time. My soul was pulled out again and I froze in fear. The frog stared at me as I thought about what Toriel had said before. I just needed to talk to it, right...? Terrified, not wanting to harm the creature, I decided to compliment it. The frog seemed to decide something, but before he could do anything, Toriel came back next to me and gave the frog a deadly glare. It ran away, and the battle ended. I sighed with relief, and followed her. 

A couple of rooms, puzzles, and a mini-heart attack she gave me intentionally by leaving me alone to “test my independence”, she unsurprisingly told me the same thing as before: that she needed to attend some business, so she had to leave me there and I had to wait for her. She gave me a cell phone for us to communicate in case I needed anything. I nodded, engraving the instructions on my brain, and waited for her to come back.

Waiting was tiring though. At first, ecstatic when I had the realisation that I was free, I decided to walk around and explore a little bit of my surroundings. Walking hurt still, so I simply walked around the room, sat down, stood up, and repeated the process over and over again. Why was she taking so long?

After receiving a series of weird phone calls involving her mobile phone being stolen from her, I decided it would be better to move on.


	14. The Door

The Ruins proved to be a very fun and interesting place. The puzzles weren’t very hard to solve, and plenty of creatures moved around and about. They always came to me out of curiosity, I suppose, as they were all neighbours or friends and I was a stranger to them. The first couple of times I encountered them I was really scared, but tried to talk to them as Toriel told me to nonetheless. That is how I found out that members of the same species preferred certain topics of discussion or actions, like being praised or receiving some food. I also noticed that they were really clumsy with their money, as I frequently found gold coins scattered on the floor. Didn’t they know about pockets or purses? Didn’t matter much though, because I picked them up for fun. I saw no shops near, but maybe they could be useful at some point. 

There were more rooms than I remembered, but it was funny to finally understand the meaning of some of the signs that were on the wall. For example, “Three out of four gray rocks recommend you push them”. A couple of rooms after reading this sign, I was startled by a rock that wouldn’t let me push it towards the switch, and we began a series of misunderstandings about where it was supposed to move to, or the sign about the leaves, hinting me that the pattern below me was the one to follow in order to get out of there. 

I also found a small mouse which was struggling to reach a piece of cheese, and a nice ghost called Napstablook, who was able to make a top hat, or as he named it, “dapper blook”, out of his own tears. A strange but kind fellow, he was. Nearby, I saw a couple of spider webs and another sign announcing a bake sale. I thought I could use the extra energy, as I was hit by some of the monsters even though I tried really hard not to. So I decided to put some money on the web that said “Spider Donut”, and to my surprise, some small monster spiders came down, took my money and left the donut for me to take it. I shuddered, grabbed it and kept walking. 

I recognised the corridor where Chara found the toy knife, and decided to go and grab it in case I needed protection. Even though I ate the candy, I still felt very weak, but I was glad that I was reaching Toriel’s house. Sure enough, just when I was standing in front of the old tree, she appeared, surprised and worried.   
‘How did you get here, my child? Are you hurt? There, there, I will heal you... I should not have left you alone for so long...’

I smiled at her eternal kindness and patiently followed her back to her home. There, the story repeated itself, and I listened to Toriel and followed her while she took me to my room. I gratefully enjoyed her paw caressing my head as I looked at the door. Up to this point, I was beginning to feel nervous. I knew that it didn’t matter how hard I wanted to stay with her, I could never go back to the Overground if I didn’t get out of the house. Nevertheless, I needed some sleep, so I decided to go inside and rest. And I was so tired that I was quickly submerged into a deep, dreamless sleep. 

When I woke up, a big slice of the now warm butterscotch-cinnamon pie was waiting for me at the foot of the bed. Smiling, I took it and saved it for later. ‘Now’ I thought, ‘is when troubles start’. I sighed, trying not to feel so troubled about leaving Toriel. ‘Maybe if I talked to her and tried to explain to her that I need to leave in the best way possible, she would be okay, and wouldn’t have the urge to fight me... maybe I could keep talking to her and everything would be fine.’ Or so I deeply hoped... 

Conflicted, I went out of the room and reached to her. Unsurprisingly though, she would have none of it. After trying to avoid the topic a couple of times, she got the same sad but determined expression on her face. I knew what was about to come, and I was not happy about it. It was an exact re-run of what happened with Chara. 

She quickly ran away, and I followed. If walking still felt funny, imagine how it felt to run. Every step was as painful as stepping on glass, and it sent jolts of electricity through my body. I tried to focus and remain in control, my body filled with determination. Determination to confront Toriel. 

When I got to her, she told me the exact same speech. 'Every human that falls down here meets the same fate. I have seen it again and again. They come. They leave. They die. You naive child... if you leave the Ruins... They... ASGORE... will kill you. I am only protecting you, do you understand? ...go to your room.’ 

I shook my head, looked at the door and then looked back at her with longing in my eyes. Was this really necessary? I didn’t want to harm her. Heck, I didn’t even want to point anything at her, didn’t even dare to touch Toriel. With her, something I recalled as “mother’s warmth” came to mind. Love, an inexistent feeling throughout all of those days that I had been trapped, not only in the Underground, but also in my head. It made me feel queasy, though. My memory had still yet to come back, but those feelings gave me heartache for some reason. Also, I was not eager to see Sans’ grin once again. But I had to move on. 

‘You want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like the others. There is only one solution to this. Prove yourself... Prove to me you are strong enough to survive!'

I took a deep breath.  
‘Wait. Why are you looking at me like that? Like you have seen a ghost. Do you know something that I do not?’

My eyes opened wide and I stuttered... unable to make any coherent sound come out of my mouth. Did she remember? Did she remember the fake me hurting her?   
Toriel didn’t seem to do so, the issue quickly forgotten between the tension.   
I went pale and felt my soul being taken out. I stood firmly, controlling the red heart in front of me, a little more confidently due to the practise in the ruins. Toriel wanted me to fight her, but I wouldn’t. I saw her body glowing as she raised both of her arms, her ears slightly rising due to the strong amount of magic, and with a stern expression, summon her magic fire. I breathed out, and started to dodge.  
I dodged the best I could, but her fire attacks got me a couple of times. I felt weak, but didn’t give up, and eventually discovered some kind of pattern in her flames. She tried to convince me to stay, to no avail. Slowly but surely, her expression began to change, and her attacks gradually changed their fierceness. Troubled, she even started to miss me on purpose. Soon enough, she lowered her arms and stopped attacking. 

‘No... I understand. You would just be unhappy trapped down there. The Ruins are very small once you get used to them... it would not be right for you to grow up in a place like this. My expectations... my loneliness... my fear... For you, my child... I will put them aside.’ 

My soul went back to my body, and I offered a little smile to Toriel. She turned her back against me and with a sad but soft tone in her voice, she said: ‘If you truly wish to leave The Ruins... I will not stop you. However, when you leave... please do not come back. I hope you understand...’ She faced me once more, and as my eyes welled up, she gave me the warmest hug I could remember. Her fur was soft, and she smelled of flowers. Of yellow flowers. ‘Goodbye, my child.’ 

She left, and with her a little piece of my heart. I held my tears back and stepped out of The Ruins, into the cold air of a winter wonderland.


	15. The Grin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm truly sorry for abandoning the story, guys :( I hadn't been well, but I'm okay now, and I truly want to continue and finish this. Thanks to everyone who's been supporting me <3

I stepped out of The Ruins with an enormous sense of dread weighing on me. The breeze slapped me with its cold temperature, and I turned around and glanced at the door once again. Then, the sudden realisation hit me. How stupid of me! I was so concentrated on not hurting Toriel that I didn’t think about asking for help! She would have guided me through The Underground, she could have protected me from anyone! 

Desperate, I slammed my fists on the door, knocking over and over again.   
‘Toriel! Please, come back! Toriel!’   
But it was as useless as it could be. I heard the knocks echoing through the forest, with its tall dark trees. I heard how they loudly resonated from the other side of the door too... but nobody came.   
My fists slowly stopped slamming the enormous entrance, as I stood still. Defeated, I let my body fall to the ground. 

For the first time in a while, I started to reflect on my situation. I was a child, alone, in a mysterious place. I remembered nothing but my name and what had happened not too long ago. It was cold, I had no coat and there was no sun. The only one who had showed a little bit of compassion and love had left me to wander on my own. What if Chara came back? What if Sans came back? What if I... I died? Would I come back to life once more?  
I curled up and started to cry out every single bit of misery out of my mind.  
‘Toriel... Mom... come back...’ 

Suddenly, a loud sound made me jump. Startled, I dried my eyes and stood up. Where did that come from? I certainly didn’t know, but I did remember. The last time I was here, I found Sans. And Sans remembered everything when Chara and I came back to life. It only meant one thing: I had to run and get out of there.

Walking now didn’t hurt as much. I tried to walk in a fast pace, so that I wouldn’t get tired too quick, but walking with snow up to your knees isn’t a walk in the park, and just like the last time, I heard another branch snap. As I was getting close to the bridge, I saw the shadow. ‘Please, please, stay there...’ I desperately thought, as I reached the beginning of the bridge... but it was too late. Once more, I heard the loud footsteps behind me. I froze. 

‘Human’. I heard his deep voice. I immediately turned around and extended my hand, in intent to remain casual. ‘Hehehe... the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick... wait a sec. Have you heard it before or something? You turned around before I said to...’ I swallowed and shrugged, giving the best smile I could master at the moment. He, however, didn’t seem to recognise me. ‘Weird. Whatever, you’re a human, right? I’m Sans, Sans the skeleton. I’m actually supposed to be on watch for humans right now, but... y’know... I don’t really care about capturing anybody. Now my brother, Papyrus... he’s a human-hunting fanatic. Hey, actually, I think that’s him over there. I have an idea. Go through this gate thingy’ I looked back at the gate, unsure. ‘Yeah, go right through. My bro made the bars too wide to stop anyone’.   
Decided not to make him angry, I swiftly crossed the bridge. Then, he said: ‘Quick, behind that conveniently-shaped lamp’ and I hid. Sure enough, Papyrus was coming down the road, just when I was wondering why the hell would there be a lamp in a place like this.   
‘’’Sup?’   
‘You know what “sup”, brother! It’s been eight days and you still haven’t recalibrated. Your. PUZZLES! You just hang around your station! What are you even doing!?’  
‘Staring at this lamp. It’s really cool, do you wanna look?’ My face fell. I WAS TRYING TO HIDE THERE!  
‘NO! I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THAT! WHAT IF A HUMAN COMES THROUGH HERE!? I WANT TO BE READY! I want to be the one... I must be the one! I will capture a human! Then, I, The Great Papyrus, will get all the things I utterly deserve! Respect, recognition... I will finally be able to join the Royal Guard! People will ask to be my friend... I will bathe in a shower of kisses every morning!’ he exclaimed, as he spoke in a heroic pose. I sighed. I was saved by Papyrus’ annoyance of Sans, for the time being.   
‘Hmm... Maybe this lamp will help you’. Oh my god, Sans was boycotting me! Papyrus was bound to watch this time...  
‘SANS! YOU ARE NOT HELPING! YOU LAZYBONES! All you do is sit and boondoggle! You get lazier and lazier every day!’ Papyrus said as he stomped the ground with his foot.   
‘Hey, take it easy. I’ve gotten a ton of work done today. A skele-ton’. I had to bite my tongue.   
‘SANS!’  
‘Come on, you’re smiling.’  
‘I am and I hate it! Ugh... why does someone as great as me have to do so much just to get some recognition...’  
‘Wow, sounds like you’re really working yourself... down to the bone.’ I choked down on a horselaugh. Man, he was bad.   
‘Ugh! I will attend to my puzzles... as for your work? Put a little more... “backbone” into it! NYEHEHEHE!’ 

And thus, Papyrus left, leaving us terribly confused at that intent of a joke. I crept back to Sans, mortified, testing his reactions. He seemed a little bit different, and he didn’t seem to recognise me at all. It was just as if we were re-writing the story. 

He told me to leave the station, and just when I reluctantly decided to show him my back, he spoke once more, making the hairs on my arms stand.   
‘Actually... hey, hate to bother you, but can you do me a favour? I was thinking... my brother’s been kind of down lately... He’s never seen a human before, and seeing you might just make his day. Don’t worry, he’s not dangerous, even if he tries to be.’ I looked at him and nodded. ‘Thanks a million, I’ll be up ahead’ he said, and then he left on the other direction. 

I sighed my shivers away. After a while, cold sweat was the only reminiscence of the scare. I kept taking deep breaths to calm myself down, to wash away every bit of anxiety and fear that those hollow eye sockets left in me. It had gone better than I thought. Papyrus was livelier than I remembered, and Sans was kinder and less suspicious towards me, or so it seemed. That was a good thing, I guessed. Thus, I decided to keep going, towards the direction Papyrus took earlier, glad to leave behind the only grin that lived in nightmares.


	16. Fresh Start

The scenery changed a little. I entered a small clearing packed with some pine tree looking plants, where the snow was carefully shovelled away, creating a small path. I walked towards the mysterious box at the end of the path, in the middle of the snow, just where Chara found it last time. It had a sign next to it that said: “This is a box. You can put an item inside or take an item out. The same box will appear later, so don’t worry about coming back. Sincerely, a box lover.”

I thought that maybe it was someone else’s box, but decided to look inside anyway. Unsurprisingly, when I opened it I found the same tough looking glove. I stood there, with my hand on top of the box and my eyes fixed on the glove, pondering between taking it or not, when Sans’ grin came to my head once again. I sighed, and thought that, as it was a little bit dusty, its owner wasn’t very fond of it and wouldn’t miss it for a while, and that I could give it a proper, yet macabre, use. So, I decided to leave the knife behind and pick up the glove instead. I closed the box and walked away. 

I followed the path through the heavy snow. Suddenly, I could hear someone talking. Extremely loud. Hit with realisation, I hid behind a tree as soon as I recognised the owner of the voice. Shaking out of fear and cold, I waited for a while, but Papyrus’ voice did not get any quieter, so I decided to peek and try to find his location. Letting only one eye show, I could spot him and Sans talking at the end of the path I was supposed to follow, so I hid again. ‘Okay’ I thought. ‘Plan A: The woods are far too dense to try to find my way out of them on my own, so that is a no go. Plan B: going back to Toriel’s is still a no go, as she will certainly not answer the door again, and I may find Flowey on the way too. So, Plan C... keep going’. 

Terrified and hoping Papyrus would protect me from Sans just in case, I casually strolled down the road. Just as I appeared to be in their line of sight, Papyrus interrupted his speech and looked at me, then at Sans, at then at me again, just like the last time. Ecstatic, he exclaimed:  
‘SANS!! Oh my god! Is that... a human!? And it looks so familiar...’  
‘Uh... I think it looks familiar... because it’s a rock?’ Wait, what? ‘Familiar?’ I thought. ‘A rock? - Oh, that rock... wait, was he really distracted by that rock?’ I continued, looking at the floor behind me. ‘Oh’ Papyrus said, disappointed.  
‘Hey, what’s that in front of the rock?’  
‘Oh my god! Is... is that a human?’ He asked, apparently trying to whisper but not quite doing it.  
‘Yes’ Sans answered in the same fashion.  
‘Oh my god! Sans! I finally did it! Undyne will... I’m gonna... I’ll be so... POPULAR!’ he screeched with joy. Realising that it was maybe a little bit unprofessional to let your prisoner listen to yourself squealing, Papyrus regained composure.  
‘Ahem. HUMAN! You shall not pass this area! I, the Great Papyrus, will stop you! I will then capture you! You will be delivered to the capital! Then, then...!’ I looked at him, expectantly.  
‘Well, I’m not sure what happens next. In any case... continue! Only if you dare! Nyeh heh heh!’ He happily ran away while laughing... and left me on my own. With Sans. 

Cold sweat began to run down my back once more. I braced myself, looking everywhere for flying bones and frying lasers. But Sans just smiled at me, with his bony hands in his pockets.  
‘Well, that went well. Don’t sweat it, kid. I’ll keep an eye socket out for you.’ He blinked and then left. 

Sighing out of relief, I went on. I walked past a sentry station with a funny dog who could only see moving things and thought something was petting it out of the blue, a couple of monsters named “Snowdrakes”, and the very kind snowman, who, this time, asked me to take a piece of him to travel around the world and see what he couldn’t see. I thought it was very cute, so I carefully put some of his snow inside a little pocket in my shorts. I, being physically incapable of fighting them, always found a way around to avoid conflict. The monsters ended up being reasonable. 

After meeting the snowman I found... the skeleton brothers. Again. And I overheard a bit of their conversation.  
‘SERIOUSLY though, that human... Do I know that person?’  
‘Do you not know who you know?’  
‘PBPBPPBPT!! Of course I know who I know! I wanted to know if you know I know who I know as much as I know I know who I know, you know?’  
Confused and stressed to hear him talking about how he felt he knew me, I let out a weak whimper, which he miraculously heard.  
‘Oh ho! Speak of the devil! In order to stop you... my brother and I have created some puzzles!’ 

This puzzle ended up being a zapping maze thingy, which I could solve easily thanks to Papyrus’ clumsy help, and after his warning of Sans’ puzzle, they both left. I sighed, worried. I was afraid that he’d remember everything and tell Sans, and that Sans would then kill me. But he was still struggling with the thought, and Sans showed no signs of remembering yet. Was it an act? Was he waiting for me to mess up, or did he want to ambush me to make it easier? Whatever it was, I had to keep going. 

In one of the clearings, there was another box. Not one of the strange boxes, but an ordinary cardboard box. Inside, there was a thick fuzzy black coat, gloves, a scarf and a woollen hat. I looked at them, speechless. A small card with impeccable handwriting said: “Take care.” Confused, I decided to put them on to battle the growing sensation of hypothermia. 

I encountered the brothers a couple of more times. Sans’ puzzle ended up being some kind of newspaper word search, and I had to lie about eating the frozen spaghetti. It was frightening to encounter Papyrus alone sometimes, but he was always friendly and told me stories about Sans or himself. Even though his towering height was intimidating, his personality was very sweet, and his love for puzzles, adorable. He definitely wasn’t made for being a guard, as he still didn’t imprison me. He would also get more and more friendly and excited whenever he talked to me, and whenever I solved his puzzles. 

Later on, I was able to play fetch with the couple of guard dogs, and found a snow dodecahedron. I met a puppy guard which grew an incredibly long neck when I petted him and an artistic puppy who was inspired by it and made snow sculptures out of that dog. Overall, it had been a pleasant experience so far. Sans didn’t seem to remember and I always found a way out of the fights. In the end the monsters, who were warm-hearted and amiable, liked me. I never knew if they realised I was a human, but at least they were making everything exciting and new.  
I wished I got to Snowdin soon though, because I began to grow exhausted and needed a couple of hours of sleep. So, I stopped at the sentry station, sat down and rested for a while.  
I watched as my breath twirled around in the air making shapes and then disappearing. I smiled. It was much better to be myself again.


	17. The Bridge

Snowdin Town wasn’t far, I remembered correctly. But it was still a long way to go. I stood up, brushed the snow off my body and headed the only way I could go: forward.  
I found a bigger version of one of Papyrus’ earlier puzzles, and two snow figures near it. One of them was a snow Papyrus, and the other one was just a big lump of snow with “Sans” written on top in a red substance. I froze in realisation. It was red. I tried to remain calm. ‘Do monsters bleed?’ I asked myself. The answer came by quickly, with images of countless monsters turning into dust. I shivered. What was it then? 

I thought about how this Sans had been acting different, so maybe, just maybe, I was being paranoid about him. He had been all smiles and jokes… That’s why I decided to investigate. I came closer and closer… and realised... It was ketchup. The smell smacked me and brought the colour back to my face. Sighing, I went back to the puzzle, thinking about how to solve it. 

It was quite easy. Once done, a bridge formed in front of my eyes, and I crossed it. Unfortunately, it was covered in ice, so instead of walking across, I flew from one side of the bridge to the other, a small lump of snow forming on top of my head in the way, falling from the trees surrounding it. 

Shaking it off, I walked towards an incredibly small doghouse, surrounded by big, snow lumps. I ran around, amazed at the perfect shape they had. I began to play, jumping on top of each and every one of them, sliding down and running towards another to climb again. 

After some much needed laughter, with my cheeks all red, I walked towards the last one, the one covering the road, too tired to climb it. But when I was right in front of it… a small tail poked out of one end. Then, a small head out of the other.  
Dumbstruck with the dog’s cuteness, I went to pet it, only to discover that it was buried in the snow. It brushed the snow away, a huge armour replacing it. The dog was almost three times my height now. I was in serious trouble.

It barked at me, excited. I suddenly remembered the stick I was carrying around, and threw it at it because, hey, it was a dog. It surprisingly worked, and we played fetch for a while. Then, it jumped out of its armour towards me, and licked my face happily. He then jumped back in head first, and headed out of the way.  
‘Aren’t monsters weird?’ I thought, happy to have made the little dog happy too. 

A long, narrow bridge was now in front of me. I crossed it, slowly, trying not to fall down the deep hole that was right beneath my feet. This place was extremely dangerous. 

Suddenly, someone I knew very well called out to me.  
‘Human! This is your final and most dangerous challenge! Behold, the gauntlet of deadly terror!’ Papyrus said, as the bridge filled with dangerous weapons everywhere.  
‘When I say the word, it will fully activate!’ 

I got nervous. When we first came here with Chara, Papyrus was so disappointed that he preferred not to use the weapon and just let us through. But this time, he was overly excited. He did seem to want to activate it, and if that was the case, there was nowhere around it. The bridge was so narrow you could only go forward or backward, and those weapons had to be avoided at any cost. If anything, I could only plead for mercy. 

‘Are you ready!?’ he screamed. ‘Because I am about to do it!’ 

I waited, making my stance. But nothing happened. There was an eerie silence, which was only broken when Sans spoke. ‘Well? What’s the holdup?’  
‘Holdup!? What holdup!? I’m… I’m about to activate it now!’ the brother answered, doubt staining his words. Maybe there was going to be a way out of it.  
‘That, uh, doesn’t look very activated.’  
‘Well! This challenge! It seems… maybe too easy to defeat the human with. Yeah, we can’t use this one! I am a skeleton with standards! My puzzles are very fair, and my traps are expertly cooked! But this method is too direct! No class at all! Away it goes!’ 

For my own physical and mental health, the bridge was left clear. I looked back at Papyrus with relief and a small smile of gratitude.  
‘What are you looking at!? This was another decisive victory for Papyrus! Nyeh heh heh!’ Papyrus screamed back as he turned around and ran away, leaving me alone with Sans at the end of the bridge. He stood there, by the side of the road, waiting. 

Cautious, I crossed the half of the bridge that was left. I walked slowly past him, while he grinned. There I could see the sign “Welcome to Snowdin!” just a couple of meters ahead. I kept walking towards the town, while a sweet smell of cinnamon and chocolate came to my nostrils. But my happiness was interrupted by a bony hand fiercely grabbing my arm. 

‘Hey, kid. Where do you think you’re going?’  
I stood still, looking at his empty eye sockets.  
‘Y’know, I’ve been watching you for a while now. You look different.’  
Numbed with fear, I began to tremble.  
‘So you remember me, huh? Well, I remember you. I wanted to ignore it for the sake of the old lady and the promise I made to her, but right now… I can’t take any chances. Sorry, kid, but that’s my brother you’ll be fightin’ soon, and I won’t let you do it again.’

His left eye blasted with blue magic. I could only feel terror.  
He raised his arm, and the sadly familiar feeling of his magic bones piercing my body filled me with that indescribable pain. I gasped for air, embracing my fate once again. In the end, it had all been for nothing. 

One huge skeletal beast head appeared, hovering over Sans as the blood flowed out of my wounds, staining the snow.  
‘Goodbye, kid.’


	18. Hopes and dreams

“My child, please wake up.”  
I was awoken by an extremely worried Toriel, just like many times before, in similar circumstances.  
I opened my eyes, slowly trying to recover the twirling, fluttering memories buried deep down in my mind, their certain ambiguity blurring the line between reality and dreams.  
They came back slowly, as I fought to turn my jagged breath and the hysterical beating of my heart back to normal. It always went that way: my mind reliving my experience in The Underground, only to painfully twist the story and wake me up in a tranced state of confusion and terror. It always ended up in Sans killing me at some point, as if my mind was driven to never make me forget about the horrible, scorching pain and Sans’ hollow eyes. 

I breathed deeply, examining my surroundings as Toriel took me in her fuzzy, warm arms and softly stroked the short strands of my hair with her paws and her usual gentleness. Each caress helped me ease the pain and the fear, her magical motherly love being an instant relief. My skin was damped in sweat, and it glistened with the light of the breaking dawn coming from the window in front of my bed. Its curtains were open, just like every night, for moonlight was the only thing capable of lulling me to sleep. 

My eyes darted across the room, swiftly filling my mind with recognition.  
I was in my new house, tucked in my bed in the middle of the room with Toriel. My room, painted in a soft baby blue, lighted up as the sun raised, its light beams making every item visible, dissipating the shadows and filling every single corner, as a miracle.   
I examined the big bookcase, crammed with several books and some of Papyrus’ figurines, the ones we used to play with from time to time. Next to it, there was my desk, with plenty unfinished drawings and art supplies scattered on top. On the other side of the room, there was my closet, next to the bathroom. On my right, my small night table, with the lamp Alphys had given me a couple of years ago, next to the clock Undyne had given me that same year. All of those memories eased my mind and helped me feel safe once more. 

My eyes slowly went back to Toriel. “Are you okay, Frisk?”   
I examined her face. The ticking of time didn’t seem to have any effect on her, for she looked beautiful as always, in her purple nightgown. Her sparkly eyes, filled with worry, dwelled deep into mine, as her ears twitched and a soft, kind smile reassured me that everything would be alright.  
“Yes, mom, I'm okay.”  
“My goodness, dear. We should really do something about these nightmares. It has been so long…”  
“They will pass, eventually” I answered, trying to shrug it off.  
“You always say that, Frisk. I seriously think we should work on them. Maybe a human doctor will do…?”  
“No, mom. I’m fine, thank you.”  
Toriel sighed, sadness in her usual cheerful voice. “Okay… Nevertheless, it's still early, my child. You should rest a bit longer. You surely mustn't be tired today of all days” she said, tucking me back in bed.  
“Happy birthday, sweetie.” Toriel kissed my forehead and left, closing the door behind her.

I tossed and turned for a while after she left, unable to sleep. It had been six years since Asriel broke the barrier… six years since I fell into The Underground. And yet, my nightmares always made me recall every single detail of it, almost as if I were living it again, without a purpose.

I sighed, remembering everything that had happened. When the barrier broke, we all went out. A settlement was built at first: with monster magic, it was done in just a day, and everybody moved out immediately, eager to see sunlight. Aquatic monsters found comfort too, as the settlement was built right next to an enormous lake, where Onionsan could live with its friends in a new, uncrowded home. We remained there for a couple of months practically undisturbed, until some of the monsters decided to explore new horizons. Some humans were somewhat accepting of them, but others… not so much. It wasn't safe for a monster to be on its own, for several anti-monster groups and gangs were on the loose. Nevertheless, life was good. It took a while for the first humans to adjust and accept the reality, but seeing how useful monsters could be because of their magic, it was decided that they could stay. The first laws to protect them were created, and some others to restrict the usage of magic or some demeanours that were considered inappropriate (for example, sock showing. Scandalous!). But monsters were happy, and filled with hope. The town of Ebott became adapted quickly: monsters went to work with humans and could also go to parks, supermarkets and cinemas practically without being disturbed.

Asgore and Toriel decided to be king and queen once more, but only in the political aspects. They were now representatives of the monsters, and had to attend meetings on a regular basis, apart from other chores that I indeed did not understand one bit. Their relationship was a bit better, but to Asgore’s grief, Toriel wanted to remain just as friends. Therefore, they were not living together, but saw each other almost every day. Asriel decided to remain in The Underground, and I visited him occasionally for a chat now that his murderous intents had stopped. He loved when I went to visit him, but now that he was back to being Flowey, he never went out, as he was decisive to keep his existence in secrecy.

Alphys and Undyne had made their relationship official, and were living together in a lab shaped like a fish a couple of houses away, where Toriel and Asgore left me when they had to travel. They had become very fond of each other, and apart from their constant fight over the air conditioning, they were happy together. Alphys and Toriel started their own project: a Human-Monster school. Against all odds, it turned out extremely well, and both worked there as teachers. As Newest Home was built near the city, the school was merely twenty minutes away, making it very comfortable for little monsters to attend. Alphys sometimes got together with human scientists to share information and experiment, but she had hidden piles of monster technology, just in case something was to happen. Nevertheless, it had never proved to be necessary. Undyne found a job as a personal trainer at the local gym, and had made herself famous for her extreme and unusual (but highly effective) methods.   
Papyrus and Sans lived near too. They created and exact replica of their house on the surface -now baptized as Newest Home by Asgore- and were still living together. Papyrus was working with Muffet at her bakery in one of the city's main streets. It had become one of the biggest tourist attractions, just like New Grillby's. And Sans... nobody really knew what Sans did to bring food on the table, but nobody asked either. He went out, did his things, and brought money at the end of the month.

And as for me… my memory came back as soon as we left The Underground. It was rather a complicated accomplishment, but the government thought that it was a good idea to set the example by letting Toriel adopt me, even if the requirements were not met. The adoption centre I escaped from was not eager to accept, but it was one less mouth to feed and one less child to beat up for misbehaving. I never got to meet my parents, and Toriel was the best mom I could ever dream of having. She was caring, patient, understanding and overall, a loving mother. Asgore acted as a parent too, and I always stayed at least a couple of days at his house every week.  
Still, after everything seemed to be good in my life… my nightmares remembered me of my deepest fears. Even though Sans never hurt me when I went through The Underground for the second time, I couldn't erase all the memories I had with him while I was being possessed by Chara. He, being Tori's best friend, came by occasionally, but I always managed to escape. I pretended I was asleep, that I had homework, or simply decided to pay a visit to a couple of friends or run away to stay at Asgore's. I did everything that was in my hands to avoid him and he never got close to me either. He was never rude or scary, but I couldn't help the flashbacks, the cold sweat or the trembling hands whenever I saw him…  
The downside was, I could never avoid him when Toriel invited everyone for dinner or whenever there was a special occasion. And today was indeed a very special occasion. It was my eighteenth birthday.


	19. Happy Birthday

“Heya, punk! Wake up!”  
I was awoken at noon by an overly excited Undyne literally throwing me out of bed. I flew across the room, only to be caught by Toriel at the last moment.   
“Undyne, I would rather not have you tossing my daughter around” she scolded her, gently holding me in her arms and checking if any of my bones were broken.   
“Sorry, Tori. I just can’t help it! SHE’S SO TOSSABLE!”  
“Dude” I said, jumping back to the floor, now safe. “I’m so breakable!”  
“Y-yes, she is, dear. Remember when you broke her arm…?” Alphys asked, appearing behind Toriel to hold Undyne’s scaly hand, softly waving hello at me with her other hand. 

Mom shivered, uncomfortable. “Let’s not remember that. Frisk doesn’t like to have her soul taken out, so I couldn’t heal her with magic. She took two full months to recover… It was her left arm, above all…” she remembered, her tone gradually becoming softer and lowering the volume of her voice.  
“Oh, yeah. She couldn’t even do her homework. Sorry ‘bout that again, punk” Undyne said, blushing. Alphys smiled a bit at her, and squeezed her hand reassuringly. I, seeing that she was genuinely troubled, quickly shrugged it off to ease the atmosphere.  
“No worries. Just please, don’t do it again.”  
“All right, my dears” mom exclaimed, her now happy tone dissipating what was left of the awkwardness. “Frisk should get ready for her birthday now. Why don’t we leave her alone for a bit?” Toriel said, gently gesturing towards the door.   
“F-Frisk! Your gifts are in the living room!” Alphys stuttered, as the three of them left, closing the wooden door.  
“Okay, thank you!”

Well, I was surely awake by then. Sighing, I closed my curtains, took a clean towel from the closet and went into the shower.  
As the water ran down, I began to mentally prepare myself for the meeting. It had been a couple of months since I talked with Sans, and he was coming today. I did not want to see him, but there was nothing I could do. After all, how could I explain it? This Sans was not like the other Sans… or were they both the same person? I could never tell, for every conversation we had was extremely vague or simply inexistent. He never showed any signs of remembering anything, and he was never hostile towards me. He was never at home when Papyrus and I had sleepovers, which was totally fine for me. We ignored each other’s existence unless it was strictly necessary not to, and he punned around and cracked jokes with mom, drinking ketchup out of the bottle, undisturbed by my presence… unlike me, who turned into trembling goo whenever he was near. I was surprised that nobody had brought the subject, not even him, being as clever as he is, nor mom, the most perceptive monster I knew.   
Washing my hair always helped me relax a little. “It will be fine” I said to myself, as the steam danced in the air in a relaxing manner. I massaged my hair in a soothing motion, the vanilla scented shampoo making miracles with my nerves. “Everybody will be there, and Sans will sit as far as he can to doze off, as usual…”   
But not even the hot water could wash off the feeling that that day, something was going to be off.

Wrapping up my body in my fuzzy purple towel, I headed towards the bedroom. I put on my favourite clothes as slowly as I could, fighting with the treacherous underwire of the bra that kept digging into my skin. Defeated, I decided to change it, starting the process all over again, delaying the meeting on purpose. Next, I dried my hair, quarrelling with the usual tangles and knots.   
I looked at the fish-clock: 1:23 PM. The visitors were supposed to arrive already…   
Doubtful, I paced around, looking everywhere, trying to think about something else to do in the meantime to stall for more time. My hands, already shaky and with their nails bitten off irregularly out of the unbearable nerves, frantically tried to re-comb my already combed hair in a compulsive motion. It wasn’t until half of the brittle teeth of the comb snapped off that I realised there was something very wrong with me. Encouraged by the lovely smell coming from the other side of the door, I put the comb down, straightened my blouse and headed out. 

At the end of the corridor, I was greeted in a kind fashion.  
“Took you long enough!” Undyne exclaimed as she finished setting the table, not without her characteristic violence.   
I was surprised to see the enormous table adorned so beautifully. It was filled with red and yellow flowers, with matching napkins and decorations all over the place. Huge salad plates of every imaginable vegetable rested on top of the table, with, of course, red and yellow salad spoons. There were also red and yellow cups, and mom had even changed the labels of the soda bottles to make them match. The walls were filled with colour, as paper ornaments decorated the pale walls, and an enormous “Happy Birthday!” sign hung from the ceiling. Soft music could be heard from the living room next door, creating a surreal atmosphere that made me feel like I was flying. Happiness filled me to the core, as an uncontrollable, huge smile came to my lips. Sadly, the moment was lost too soon, as Alphys’ voice shook me out of my trance.   
“You know how she loves to take long showers. You should be able to relate.”   
“I know, Alphy! But we came here to see her, you know?”  
“U-Undyne, you should not say those things…”  
“Whatever. Hey, Frisk!” Undyne grinned mischievously at me. I turned to look at her, and when I realised what she was going to do, it was already too late to run.   
“COME HERE, YOU PUNK!” she screamed, bolting towards me. In just a second, she grabbed me and began the torture.  
“BIRTHDAY NOOGIES!” she yelled unapologetically, enjoying the absence of my mom’s scolding presence to please herself by rubbing her knuckles on my head and messing up my hair.   
“Undyne, please, have mercy!” I yelped back, the air swiftly escaping out of my lungs as I choked on my own laugh. Alphys giggled back.   
“Guys, you should behave or Toriel will…”  
“Undyne, what on earth are you doing to my child!?”   
“Hello, your majesty! I’m just…”  
“Help!”  
“The doorbell!”

Undyne had managed to slip away and avoid mom’s scolding: saved by the doorbell. Our roughhousing and mom’s nag was interrupted by the cheerful presences of my missing guests. Their lively conversation went through the living room to dining room, and it would be unsurprising that they could be heard from the kitchen.   
Everybody ran to the door, expectant to meet the guests. Everyone… except me. My heart began to race, and my hands to shake. I breathed in and out, mentally preparing myself for our visitors, trying to hold my composure the best I could. My fingers ran through my hair, compulsively trying to fix the mess Undyne had made as my knees went weak with anxiety. 

I approached the door, but let mom greet the guests first. Mom couldn’t even open the door, as Papyrus flung it open, threw himself at me and squeezed me tight.  
“Human! I, The Great Papyrus, wish you a happy new orbit around the sun!” he said, spinning me in the air.  
“Pap! Don’t squeeze so tight!” I said, laughing. He gave me a loving skeleton peck on the cheek, put me back on the ground and handed me his gift: a red, rectangular package with an orange lace on top.   
‘Here. I am sure you will be amazed by my gift’s superiority.’   
‘Of course I will, Pap’ I smiled. He always knew how to make me feel better, and that little anxiety rush, product of the hug that mom seemed not very pleased about, had somewhat eased the nervousness. We had become very attached to each other, and his lively presence was an extraordinary addition to my life. 

Asgore approached me after Papyrus let go. He, too, lifted me up, pressing me against his soft, warm fur. It was always nice when he held me, and I loved being close to him. Even though I didn’t see him every day, he had been a great dad so far: an excellent confident, who spoiled me just a little bit, and was all ears, smiles, and tea. I stroked his fur gently, as the smell of golden flowers filled my nostrils and brought back memories from a long time ago, as I thought that I would never get tired of being held by him, no matter how old I grew.   
“Happy birthday, dear. I wish for all of your dreams to come true.”  
“Thank you, dad.”   
He didn’t put me back on the ground. Instead, he sat me on one of his shoulders, tickling me a little in the process. Mom stood next to us, smiling.   
“Let me take that for you” he said, snatching Papyrus’ present with his big paw. “Shall we open your presents now?’  
“Yes, please!” I answered, excited. Since always, opening presents was one of my favourite things ever, right after giving them.  
“Hey, kid. You’re missing mine.”  
“H-hey…”  
Sans’ unmistakable deep voice was calling out to me. I tried my best to suppress the chill that went down my spine, as I carefully looked down at the figure resting in the doorway. He looked tired and battered, huge eye bags adorning his face. It seemed like his head hurt, and even though his voice sounded almost as usual, Sans didn’t look like himself.

“Here” he said, handing a small blue bag to Asgore and grinning at me. I gulped, cold sweat beginning to run down my skin.  
“Thanks, Sans…” I answered, looking away.   
“Of course, my brother was too lazy to look for something. Luckily I, your best friend The Great Papyrus, happily dragged him along to the mall and helped him. I am sure you will like it! Not as much as mine, but almost! Because mine is the betterer.”   
I smiled a bit at his constant struggle with superlatives, his innocence and upbeat personality helping me to restrain the negative feelings tightening my chest. “Thank you.”  
“Here, sweetheart. This is our gift” Tori said, smiling warmly, giving me a big, purple box, tied with a light blue lace.   
“Thanks, guys. Could you please take me to the couch?” I asked Asgore, as I tried to keep my balance (and not quite making it).   
‘Sure, Frisk’ dad answered, as he took the present from my hands, saving me from a two meter fall. 

The living room was big enough for us to fit, and had a small table where Undyne and Alphys’ present was waiting. Mom loved to have visitors at home, so it was filled with bean bags, cushions and couches, all pointing towards an enormous television Alphys had built for us. It was the perfect place for sleepovers and meetings.   
Asgore took me to my little couch and carefully dropped me there. It needed to be smaller because of the monsters’ normal heights, and almost everything in the house was adapted so that I could fit, reach and move around comfortably. Alphys and Sans, who were smaller than normal monsters, also benefited from this arrangement.  
Everybody sat down in their usual places, and dad left the presents next to me so that I could reach them better. I gave a quick glance at Sans and found him standing next to the window, in a trance, watching the leaves dance in the wind.

“Okay, punk, ours first!” Undyne yelled, as she tossed the couple’s present at me. I giggled.  
“Sure, just calm down, dude.”  
I opened the box to find a set of Halloween biscuit cutters. There were ghosts, pumpkins, bats and skeleton shapes in a variety of sizes. An overly excited gasp could be heard from the big, red bean bag.  
“Hey, it’s me over there!” Papyrus squealed, delighted. Next to him, his brother managed to smile a bit at his brother, uncomfortable, and kept on watching through the window.  
“W-we know how much you love Halloween, so we decided to give you something that would encourage you to… to learn how to cook.” Alphys explained.  
“Of course, mom had something to do with this” I replied, eyeing Toriel suspiciously as she giggled.  
”Oh, you caught me, my child. But it is indeed true that you could learn how to cook. It would be very beneficial if you move out in a couple years’ time.”  
“We can get to that bridge first and then try to find out how to cross it” I giggled back. 

“Open my present now, human!” Papyrus commanded, getting up from his favourite spot, startling Sans.   
“Okay, cool dude. What did you get me this time?” I asked, ignoring Sans’ reaction as I opened the red box. Inside, there was a framed drawing, which seemed to be made by Papyrus himself. It was a rather childish one, which showed both of us building a Snowman in Snowdin Town, back in The Underground. My heart melted at his thoughtful gift.   
“Oh, Pap… this is so sweet, thank you” I told him, showing the drawing and listening to everybody’s “aw”.   
“Of course, human! You could never deny my great artistic talents!” he exclaimed, posing like a hero.

Mom and dad looked at each other, smiling.   
“Why don’t you open ours now, Frisk?”  
“Okay…” I eyed Sans nervously for the last time. He was standing still, entranced, ignoring everything that was happening.   
I carefully opened the box. Inside, there was a purple hoodie with the Delta Rune on it. I looked at them, confounded.   
“Well, Frisk… we actually have an announcement to make” Asgore said, solemnly.  
“My child, as you know, both of our sons have been gone for a long time. But… you are our daughter now, and your presence has filled our hearts with joy. That’s why, on your eighteenth birthday, we wanted to officially declare you…” Toriel continued.  
“The new heir to the throne. The Delta Rune symbolizes your royal status, and from now on, you shall be the princess of Newest Home. If something was ever to happen to us, you will take our place.”  
The room became so silent the strong September wind howling outside was the only thing that could be heard. Happiness tears began to flow, as the feeling of belonging engulfed my entire being. Everybody except Sans had tears in their eyes.  
“We love you, little one. Thank you for coming into our lives.” Toriel said, as she hugged me.   
Asgore joined in, as Papyrus, Alphys and Undyne looked at the scene with proud smiles.   
“Thank you, guys… I love you too…”

“Hey, uh… sorry to interrupt but, is something burning?” Sans’ voice interrupted.  
“Oh, no! Please excuse me, maybe we could move to the dining room!?” Toriel said while running towards the kitchen in her mission to rescue the lasagne.   
“Thank goodness, dude. I’m starving!” Undyne said, quickly drying her tears as if they had never existed.


	20. Food for the soul

“Dude, human food is so weird” Undyne said as she looked at me, licking the tomato sauce off her fork. “But it's so good!” I looked around the room, where everybody seemed to be enjoying themselves. Our stomachs were full of second or third lasagne helpings and plenty of salad. I was sitting in my special chair, at the table top, with mom on my right (next to the kitchen door, where she likes to seat) and dad on my left. Alphys and Undyne were sitting next to mom, and the brothers were sitting next to Asgore. Our plates were empty, and our hearts were full. Or so I thought until I saw Sans’ plate: he had not eaten even half of his piece. I frowned, worried. He was acting weirder than usual, absentminded and lost.

“Today is a special occasion, so I thought that I should cook human food for everybody and not only for Frisk. Did it turn out to be good?”  
“Never as good as my spaghetti, but it was quite decent” Papyrus answered. Asgore scoffed.  
“Just decent? Oh, I would strongly differ. It was delicious, as always, Tori.”  
“Oh… thank you, Asgore…” mom said, blushing a little. Then she looked at Sans, aware that he was not really with us. “What do you think, Sans?”  
“Uh… sorry, 'bout what?” he asked, playing with his fork, not even looking at mom in the eye. Toriel frowned.  
“Sans, you've been awfully quiet. You don't seem to be doing okay today. Are you feeling alright?”  
“Yeah, I suppose… sorry for bothering ya, I'm just not feeling particularly humerus today” he answered, trying to force a smile. Toriel giggled at his joke.   
“Well, we need to ketchup soon. It's been a while.”  
‘Please, stop it you two!’ Papyrus yelled, exasperated, as Asgore looked away.   
“'Kay, bro. Sorry.”  
“Well, shall we bring the cake, then?” Toriel merrily offered, trotting away to the kitchen.   
She came back in no time with a huge, round cake, covered with cream and sprinkles. It had eighteen candles on top, and with a swift movement of her paw, every candle lit up in a different colour. My eyes sparkled with childish excitement, sending little jolts through my veins. She had been doing it all these years, but it still was my favourite trick. Asgore looked at her, fascinated, drunk with love. I sighed a bit mentally. They were still my favourite couple, but mom kept building a gigantic wall around her, keeping him close, but not too close. 

Everybody sang “Happy Birthday” as my eyes darted from the cake, to the paintings, to the photographs and back, uncomfortable. My body heated up a little with embarrassment: I never knew where to look at while everybody was singing the song.   
“Okay, my child. Only three wishes!” mom nuzzled my cheek with her snout, earning a giggle from the ticklish feeling it gave me and laughs as a response from the others.   
I looked at the dancing, colourful flames, blowing them after with no particular wish in mind, for that was all I could ever wish for: a roof over my head, food on a plate, a warm house, and the best parents and friends I could have ever met.   
Even though my life wasn't exactly what you would call normal, it was good.

Asgore took the candles and walked to the kitchen to throw them away.   
“Frisk, dear!” Toriel called. “Please, cut the cake while I help your father with the plates” she said, as she followed him.   
I took the big knife resting next to me, absentmindedly. I was not good at cutting cakes, and Undyne always made fun of it.   
Alphys and Undyne were eagerly chatting about a new anime that was coming out soon, and Sans was resting his head on the table while Papyrus patted him on his back. He had been feeling odd all this time, and he seemed to be even worse.  
“Brother, what's wrong?” I heard faintly from the other side of the table.  
“Ugh, Pap…” he said, a bead of sweat running down his skull, and the little lights in his eyes becoming smaller by the second.   
Nervous, I tried to ignore him as I cut the first slice, waiting for the plates to come. I heard several grunts and groans from, and decided to look at the girls, trying to find an opening to at least talk to them and shake the uneasiness away. The temperature in the room dropped, and a chill went down my spine. My muscles became stiff and my mind went blank, fear taking over my body.  
“Human, I think that…”  
“PAPYRUS, NO!”  
Sans sprung back to life with hollow eyes, holding his hand in the air, the magical blue flame I knew so well dancing in his left eye socket, interrupting Papyrus’ attempt of a conversation.  
“Sans, what the fuck!?” Undyne snapped at him, furious.   
Enormous bones emerged from the floor and pierced my hand right through, tearing my muscles, tendons and bones apart. Blood gushed out of the wound, pooling on the floor, splattering all over the table and dyeing the cake pink.  
I felt as if I had been cut in two, the horrible, familiar feeling of Sans’ bones on my body once more. I closed my eyes in disbelief, shaking, slowly losing the grip on my consciousness, my mind travelling between dream and reality, becoming immersed in a surreal feeling of loss. Soon enough, I was only able to let go. I fell, as chaos erupted in the dining room. Broken plates, the table sliced in half, the knife who knows where.   
“HUMAN!”  
“What's going on here!?”  
“Oh, my goodness!”

That’s all I could hear before I became numb with pain. I vaguely remember Undyne smacking Sans to the ground, as Papyrus held her back. Alphys began to cry, and Asgore quickly but lovingly picked me up and took me to my bed, followed by an extremely worried Toriel. Blood kept running out of the wound, now running down Asgore’s fur, leaving a gory trail as testimony.   
“I'm sorry, Frisk, but I need to do this before it's too late” mom said, as Asgore lowered me on the bed.   
Then, everything became dark.

I woke up a couple of hours after the accident. Asgore was sitting next to me in one of the dining room chairs, with a worried yet relieved look on his face.  
“How do you feel, my dear?” he spoke softly, in a calm voice.  
“God, dad, my head is spinning…” I answered, trying to sit up on my bed. But my left hand thought otherwise: when I tried to support my weight with my hands, a jolt of pain ran from my hand to my shoulder. I looked down, and was surprised to find it all bandaged up, with little stains of blood adorning the gauze. Asgore looked at me with a sad smile, keeping me upright with his paw as he put pillows on my back.  
“What happened…?” I asked, a feverish heat forming in my stomach.   
“My child… I am truly sorry about it all. Let me call your mother first, and then we will talk. Would you like a cup of tea?”  
“Okay…”  
Asgore got up quickly and went out. Meanwhile, I examined the room. On the night table, the clock showed the time with its dim light: 7:20 P.M. Next to it, I could see a thermometer, some pain-killers, a glass of water and some extra bandages. The presents were on the other side of the room, organised neatly on top of my desk. My eyes rested on Sans’ unopened present, making me shiver.  
I sighed, saying to myself how much I hated having those hunches. I tried to remember what had happened, but I couldn’t. Rather, I didn’t want to.   
“Frisk?” I heard, as mom approached the bed.  
“Hi, mom…”  
“My goodness gracious… I am so happy that you're awake…” she said, hugging me gently, with tears in her eyes.  
“Have this, Frisk. Are you hungry?” Asgore said, as he left a cup too small for him to take properly on top of my night table. From there, I could smell the sweet scent of golden flowers, the steam twirling and disappearing.  
“Thank you… no, I'm fine, really…”

My parents looked at each other, both with sad smiles on their faces. It took a while before Toriel started to talk.   
“Frisk… I know that you do not get on well with Sans. I still can't find the reason why, but as your mother, I am aware that is true. Is there anything you would like to tell us?”  
I froze. Images of the Judgement Hall came to my mind in a rapid succession, accelerating my heartbeat, churning my insides and dropping my body’s temperature.  
“Mom… I…” words would not come out. Fear had taken control once more. Was I dreaming?  
“It's okay, my child” mom sighed. “I understand if you do not want to talk about it yet. Nevertheless, I am very worried about you, so I hope that you can tell me one day.”  
“Or me.”  
“I suppose… but why are you two asking about Sans all of a sudden? I want to know what happened, not talk about those things…”  
Toriel and Asgore shared one of their looks, communicating through a single glance. Patiently, Asgore replaced Toriel in the conversation.  
“Frisk. Do you remember anything?”  
“No… last thing I remember was that I blew the candles…” I lied, in hopes that it would come true. I never wanted to remember mom’s anguished face again.   
“Well… I took them out of the cake and went to the kitchen. Suddenly, I heard strange noises coming from the dining room, and when we came back to you, Sans had just performed a magical attack. Undyne was trying to hold him down while Papyrus tried to calm him.” I was utterly shocked and breathless. Images of Sans raising his arm and blasting of his monstrous beings came to mind, overlapping with his terrible grin and hollow eye sockets. Scenes of the Judgement Hall, memories of myself slamming on the wall… My body ached, seeming to feel once more his bones piercing it.  
“A magical attack…?”  
“Yes. Even if he does not seem like it, Sans is an incredibly powerful monster. Since he joined The Royal Guard, he had been one of my most skilled sentinels. The only problem was that he was too lazy to work properly eighty percent of the time. But his attacks are extraordinarily strong…” I shivered. Hell yes I already knew that information.  
“And what happened to my hand…?”  
“Sans still has quite a bit of explaining to do” Toriel said bitterly. “But Papyrus told us that he's been having a rough time recently. His nightmares have become worse, and because he has not been sleeping well, he's having awful hallucinations. According to the girls, when his bones hit your hand, he seemed off, just as if he had been in some kind of trance…”  
“What nightmares?”  
“Those are a conversation for another day, sweetheart. Truth is, you would have to ask Sans himself, for not even Papyrus knows exactly what those are about.”   
Trying to hold back my tears, I made another question.  
“But why did he attack me…?”  
“We cannot know for sure, Frisk. Sans passed out thanks to Undyne's quick reaction. He was quite exasperated though, and almost as if… he was scared.” Toriel sadly giggled a little bit after Asgore’s explanation.   
“It does sound a tad ridiculous, doesn't it? After all, our child would not even hurt a fly…”

Guilt filled my body and slowly transformed itself into sorrow. I embraced the terrible emotions that danced in my head, resigned. Tears began rolling down my cheeks, and I clenched the bed sheets with my right hand.   
“Oh no, little one, do not cry… I am sure Sans will come back and apologise…” Toriel said, as she embraced me with her fluffy arms.   
“But what will happen to my hand…?”  
“Do not worry, Frisk” dad answered. “Your mom took your soul out and took care of most of the problem.”  
“You did what…?” I asked slowly, in between sobs. At least I had no memory of that.  
“I am so sorry, my darling…I know that you do not like it, but it had to be done in order to save you. Sadly, my magic can only heal so much… so you will have to stay in bed for a couple of days until your hand heals completely. But it will be okay, I can assure you that. Just give it time…”  
Asgore and Toriel stayed with me for a while, comforting me and trying to cheer me up a little. I sipped Golden Flower tea from my cup as they caressed my back. I slowly calmed down, while I tried to process the events of that day.  
“All right, Frisk. I think it's time for you to go to sleep now. You should rest. Tomorrow I shall bake a special little something for you” mom said.   
“Asgore, you should stay here tonight in case Frisk needs us. Do you think you could do that…?” Flustered, Asgore answered.  
“O-of course, Tori. Anything you need. And anything our little one needs” he remarked, as he pinched my nose softly.   
“Right. I shall prepare the guest room. Good night, my dear. Sleep tight.”  
“Good night, little lady. We will be here for you tonight.”  
“Good night mom, good night dad. Thank you…”  
They both kissed me goodbye carefully. And just before she left, mom opened the curtains, letting a silver ray of moonlight caress the silhouette of my body.


	21. Between existence and dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything is okay now. I want to thank ShiningWings and Sunvenice for asking how I was. You guys are great readers :'3

“Beware of the man who speaks in hands…”  
River Person’s warning echoed through the dim, gloomy walls of the cavern. I looked at my surroundings, mesmerized at the surreal colours dancing and twirling around, vanishing as quickly as they appeared out of nowhere.  
The walls had the strange, subtle glow of Waterfall, but I had never been in that particular area. There were no entrances or exits to be seen; only the river flowing endlessly by my side. Darkness stretched along the way, briefly interrupted by the eerie sparkly lights appearing and disappearing, giving the path an impression of endlessness. ¿But was it really an impression? 

Small jolts of electricity roamed from my toes to the top of my head. There was something strange about the place, but I couldn’t quite figure out what it was.   
I stood there, disoriented, unsure of where to go. Until River Person came back, there was no way to go to except forward, but something, that little voice inside of everyone’s head that we never listen to, told me to wait instead.

Just a couple of meters ahead, hiding in the darkness… there was a simple door.   
Intrigued, I approached it, only with the incessant, soothing music of running water making me company. All of a sudden, a strange, deep and penetrating voice could be heard, almost as if there was someone speaking right next to me.   
“Have you ever thought about a world where everything is exactly the same... except you don't exist? Everything functions perfectly without you...”

My heart skipped a beat, and then began to race. Trembling, I picked up the pace and trotted towards the door, trying to leave the voice behind, when another voice, as unsettling as the latter, made its appearance.  
“It makes sense why Asgore took so long to hire a new Royal Scientist” it exclaimed, entangling itself with the sound of the water.   
And then, another voice, and yet another, echoing through the endless cavern, making the hairs of my arms stand as they conversed.   
“Alphys might work faster. But the old Royal Scientist, Doctor W.D. Gaster?”  
“What an act to follow!”  
“His brilliance was irreplaceable.”  
“They say he created The Core.”  
“However, his life was cut short.”  
“One day, he vanished without a trace.”  
“They say he shattered across time and space.”  
“Well, we needn't gossip” the last voice explained in a deep, worried and almost burlesque tone, just as I was reaching out for the door in an attempt to get away from them. “After all… it's rude to talk about someone who is listening.”

Heart racing, I hurriedly opened it, fiddling with the rusty handle. Panic made me throw myself inside, frantically hoping that whatever was in there would be much better than those horrifying voices. The old door slammed shut, and the little voice kept screaming inside my head, telling me to get out of there. 

A tall, black figure stood in the middle of the empty, dark room with its back towards me. I froze in the spot as a small chuckle began to emerge from it. It slowly straightened its back, holding its head up and turning around. Its face, whiter than paper, resembled a skeleton’s, but had two deep cracks on its surface. It grinned a teethless grin, raising its hollowed hands towards the sky. An interfered, static-like noise filled the room, echoing and mixing with a deep, grievous voice.  
“Please, do come closer. You finally found me…”

Panic manifested in the shape of a piercing shriek. My muscles became stiff, ready to run, as I looked for the long-gone door behind me.   
The figure reached out for me, its skeletal hand grabbing my wrist, inciting a stinging, static pain that rattled my whole body. As I screamed my lungs out, longing for help, the room began to evaporate, disappearing little by little.  
‘Frisk!’ the figure exclaimed in terror: “stabilise your determination and come back! Please, I need you to tell Sans…”

“Frisk!”   
Dad's face greeted me once again after that horrible nightmare.   
“Little one, are you okay!?” my worried mother asked as she quickly entered the room and turned on the lights.   
I took a quick glance at my surroundings, absorbing every detail.   
I was back in my room, moonlight decorating it with its dim light. My posters, figurines, the closet, and the desk filled with birthday presents were still there, untouched. My hand was bandaged up, my pyjamas was drenched in sweat and both of my parents were staring worriedly at me. The cuckoo clock in the living room announced midnight. 

“Mom… dad?” I stared back, confused, still hearing the static ringing in my ears.  
“What happened? I was in Waterfall…”  
“Oh no, dear, it was one of those horrible nightmares again…”  
“My child. We must do something about this. It has been the fifth one in just a couple of weeks…”  
“Weeks?” I asked, lost in time, memories gone once more. 

Mom looked deeply into my eyes and squeezed my good hand tightly, tearing up.   
As the static began to vanish, my memories slowly flowed back into place. It had been two weeks since the incident. Sans sent flowers, but was apparently too embarrassed to come by and apologise. Mom was not very happy about it, but decided to give him some more time.   
Dad, on the other hand, was surprisingly and clearly pissed off, and had been staying with us at home, taking care of me while mom worked.  
Meanwhile, my hand was slowly getting better. Mom had healed me the best she could, but the damage was so great that not even directly applying magic to my soul had completely cured it. Thus, it had been taking more than a couple of days to get better. The skin and bones were all right now, but I couldn't move it properly and it still hurt.

“I am so sorry, little one… that I cannot make you feel better…”  
“It's ok, mom… I will be alright…”  
Toriel looked me in the eyes. “Frisk. We really need to do something. You keep forgetting things, becoming confused, screaming at night…”  
Apparently, my mind decided to play tricks on me once more, surpassing the number of nightmares I could take. Only this last one… was different. It felt even more vivid and disturbing.   
“…and it breaks my heart that I can't do anything about it…” she finished, in a soft whimper.  
“Mom…” Asgore kneeled by her side, tenderly caressing her back with his paw, his eyes overflowing with sadness. 

I was lost. Lost in time and space once again. Was I forgetting things? Not that I could remember.   
With a lump in the throat and teary eyes, I tried to help mom feel better.  
“Do you know what’s wrong?” startled, mom dried her tears and regained her composure, sighing. She looked at Asgore, uncomfortable. He nodded, giving her a bit of strength to go on.   
“I do believe I may have a slight idea, but I cannot be sure.”  
“What do you think it is…?” I asked, slowly.  
“Well…” she answered, pondering. “May I take your soul out? So that you can see for yourself…”

I shivered. Soul pulling never stopped being frightening. It reminded me too much of Sans' eternal battle in The Judgment Hall. Still… my parents were suffering too much… my friends were suffering too much… and I couldn't allow that. I couldn’t be a burden for them, not anymore.  
“Yes.”

Mom waved her hand slowly over my chest. The feeling of floating brought the rush of adrenaline back, making my muscles stiffen, my hands sweat and my heart race. There it was once again: the small, red, floating heart: the culmination of my being. One quick swift, and I would be gone. I looked quickly at her, trying to ignore it. Toriel smiled gently, reassuring me.   
“Do not fret, my child. Look closely…”  
Fighting against my will, I examined my soul. It had been years since I last saw it. To my surprise… it was not bright nor glowing, and it did not have a smooth surface… three deep cracks adorned the beating, opaque heart.   
“These wounds… these wounds I cannot heal. They are the cause of your discomfort, of your loss of memory…”  
Entranced, I kept staring at it. I was broken. Beaten. Even with my happy family.   
“What can we do about them…?”  
“I have consulted with Alphys on the matter. She investigated and told me that humans call it “trauma”. I insist on going to a human therapist, if you would like to… maybe they can help and heal what we monsters cannot. After all, you are a human…”

Toriel’s voice echoed inside my head. My body slowly became relaxed, and numbness invaded my whole being. Asgore began caressing my hair, the slow movements bringing me back and forth from reality and dreams. 

Mom put her paw down, making my soul go back inside. Both of them stared at me, waiting for a reply I did not have. What was this feeling? 

Tears began to roll down my cheeks. I knew, deep inside, that after all this time, this was the only way out.   
“Mom, dad…” I managed to say in between sobs, trying to control myself.   
Asgore hugged me tightly as mom squeezed my hand. “Don’t worry, little one. You will be okay. We’ll call a therapist tomorrow…”  
Toriel hugged me the best she could. “We love you, Frisk. We will always be here.”


	22. Moonlight among the shadows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I really have no excuse for being on a halt for so long. Shitty year, inspiration and will to write were gone... I am truly sorry for taking so long to update.

I wasn’t really aware of how many days passed by. I wasn’t really aware of anything at all. Memories came and went, fitting and unfitting themselves like the pieces of a puzzle. Sometimes, when I opened my eyes, it seemed like I was still dreaming. “PTSD”. “Dissociative disorder”. “Anxiety”. All of those words pranced around in my head, their meaning s unclear.

The meds the therapist gave me were supposed to make me feel better, but they didn’t have an immediate effect. So, there I was… stuck. Sunken. Beaten. Not even feeling well enough to get out of bed. My hair was tangled and dirty, my arm was still bruised and my heart beat in an unstable and slow rhythm. Mom and dad often tried to cheer me up, but nothing worked. I had already been taken to the village to see the therapist four or five times. She was a nice lady who wore glasses, just like Alphys …

Alphys. Undyne. Papyrus… I hadn’t seen anybody else since… the incident. I hadn’t done anything apart from barely eating and sleeping. My birthday presents were still on top of my desk, and Sans’ gift was there, too. Unopened.  
Only mom and dad were allowed to break my bubble, if only for a little while. Then sleepiness would win the fight, and soon I found myself dozing off and screaming to be left alone. Days, maybe weeks passed by. Whenever I woke up, I never knew what time it was, for the clock beside me had been broken to pieces during one of my panic attacks. The only thing that could give me a clue was the sunlight or moonlight that casted strange shadows on my blanket. Whenever the deafening static noise came back, I could only find comfort between my mother’s embrace. And it was in one of those moments, where past, present, illusions and reality entwined, when she said the words I feared the most.

“You and Sans need to talk.”

Once again, I found my body moving tirelessly on its own, tears gushing out like waterfalls and pain raking my vocal chords from the screams that emerged from the very core of my being. Mom could only hold me tight, embracing me with her enormous, soft paws, engulfing me in a sea of warmth and love.

After struggling for what seemed to be hours, my heart started beating at its normal rhythm once again. My head felt clearer, and a calming thought suddenly crossed my mind. “In the end, it’s better, isn’t it?” I thought to myself. “If Sans came and finally killed me, that would end everyone’s misery … I would stop worrying everyone and my parents would finally rest …”

I smiled a little, buried in my mother’s gentle hug. “Yes, mom” I said to her, in a soft voice. “He should come.”  
Mom’s eyes became watery. She wiped a tear away with her huge paw.  
“Frisk, darling, if you’re doing this for me …”  
“No, mom” I said, decisively. “I am doing this for everybody.”  
After stroking my hair for a while and humming a soft tune, mom left me alone for me to rest. Apparently, it was bedtime.

The next morning, I was awoken by a hesitant knock on the door.  
“Come in…”  
“Good morning, my child. It’s 9 a.m.”  
I was a bit surprised that Tori had come to wake me up. Lately, it was usually dad who did it.  
“Oh, hi. Where’s dad?”  
“Well…” mom said. “Thing is, there is an urgent matter that needs to be taken care of down at the village. He went there about an hour ago. As a matter of fact… I need to be there, too. But Papyrus and Sans will come for lunch!” She said, in her usual cheerful voice. “They shall accompany you today. And you will be able to… you know …”  
I smiled at the thought. “Yes, mom. It all ends today.”  
“Shall I bring you breakfast?”  
“No, thanks. I’m not very hungry…”

Tori kissed me goodbye. I was left there, sitting on my bed. “Papyrus is coming, too…” I thought. “He will probably scold me for being so messy. Maybe I should get up…” I didn’t want him to have a hideous last memory of me. The love I felt for Papyrus was what finally gave me the push I needed to drag myself out of bed.

Walking more than what was necessary to go to the bathroom felt weird. The kitchen seemed to be a hundred miles away, for my muscles weren’t used to doing so much exercise. As I walked to get myself some food, I looked at the rooms I hadn’t been in for a long time. The curtains were closed all around the house, and the dim sunlight struggling to get through them gave it a gloomy feeling.

Everything was the same. The flower pots, the huge couch and the puffs on the floor, the light-blue wall paint... even the same wooden table with the enormous chairs were the same. It felt like I had been sitting there just yesterday …

I entered the big, yellow kitchen, trying to absorb every single detail. I couldn’t help but smile while I looked at the step-ladder I had to stand on whenever Tori or Papyrus dragged me into the kitchen. It was next the wall, with no speck of dust on top. The enormous cupboards still had cute stickers stuck on them, and the fridge was packed with food. On top of the kitchen table rested a biscuit jar in the shape of a goat. It had a pink post-it note written by mom, easily distinguishable for her beautiful handwriting. “For my precious daughter”.

I opened the jar and found my prize: a huge mountain of homemade chocolate-chip biscuits. For the first time since who knows when, my stomach growled out of hunger. A bowl of those definitely didn’t seem to be a bad idea.

I headed towards the lower cupboards to find a bowl and a glass. I pretty much emptied the jar and then proceeded to pour myself a glass of milk. The fireplace in the living room was on, and its warmth found its way to my aching legs as I sat in my special chair. The tic-toc coming from the grandfather clock was the only sound that could be heard apart from my munching.

After that decent breakfast, I washed the tableware and headed back to my room. If Papyrus was seeing me for the last time, at least I wanted him to look at a clean version of me. It was embarrassing when I noticed that because I had not been showering for so long, I had almost forgotten where the towels were, so finding them in the closet was a huge relief.

The warm water felt weird flowing down my body. My hair was so sickeningly dirty that I almost emptied my strawberry scented shampoo, and rubbing off all the sweat and dirt took quite a while. By the time I got out, the clock struck 11.

Drying my hair wasn’t a problem: the problem was that, when I tried to get dressed, all of my clothes were too big. I hadn’t noticed how skinny I was now, which caused my jeans to slide down my legs and my t-shirts fitting in a rather loose manner. I struggled for a long time, holding the jeans in place with my left hand while practically emptying the closet with my right hand. Finally, at the back of a drawer I found a black belt hiding between my socks.

When I finished getting ready, I looked at the person who was staring at me on the other side of the mirror. A short, definitely too thin to be healthy girl stared back at me, with huge eyebags under her brown, lifeless eyes. Messy hair, dry lips and pale skin were unknown facial features to me until then: until I prepared myself to meet the smiling death for a second time . 

I sighed, and just as I was heading out of my room to open the curtains, I heard the doorbell ring.


	23. Tick tock

“Uh, hey there, kid. Papy here?”   
I stood there, holding the door open. Although his presence usually induced me in a terrible state of panic, it didn’t even startle me then. I stared back at the lonely hooded figure in the doorway. My vision was a bit blurry, for restlessness only helped in crippling me further into an unconscious state of mind. His voice resounded with an echo, as if I had been listening to him with covered ears, and his image appeared so distant that it felt like I had been still dreaming. 

“Hey, Sans. I thought he was coming with you” I answered, my voice devoided with emotion.  
“Well, I kinda fell asleep. He, uh… said he was going to Muffet’s Café to buy some cupcakes, but that was a while ago. Figured he’d be here already”.   
“Oh, I see…”

Brown eyes met eye sockets, their characteristic glint throbbing with emotions. A small drop of sweat rolled down on the side of his skull.  
“Uh… may I come in?”  
“Oh, right…” 

The skeleton dragged his body into the house and stood in the middle of the living room. I sighed and closed the door, hoping that Papyrus wouldn’t come around anytime soon. 

“Hey, Sans…?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Let’s not be awkward about this. Just do it already”.  
Sans looked back at me with an inquisitive stare after widening his eye sockets for a split second.   
“What are you talking about, kid?” he said, in his usual burlesque tone.   
“Cut the crap, dipshit.” I barked out as I walked closer to him.  
“Oh, my, Tori wouldn’t like it if she heard you speaking like that, little lady”. He grinned.  
“Come on, Sans. We both know that we both know”. Sans’ grin disappeared.  
“Oh, yeah? If you’re so smart, then tell me, Frisk: what do we know?”  
“We know that you are aware that this stupid faux life is just a fucking illusion! We know that you’ve been having tons of nightmares! Is little Sansy afraid of a kid? Shall I bring the knife then? Let’s wait for Papyrus!”  
Sans’ body began to tremble with rage. His eye sockets went as dark as a moonless night, and his voice ached with pain and anger.   
“Don’t play with me, kid. If I haven’t done anything to you yet it’s because of Toriel”.  
“You haven’t done anything because you’re afraid! Quit lying, you’re terrified of a child!”  
“I’m warning ya. One more word and that’s it” Sans replied in a deep, soft voice.  
“Do you think I’m an idiot!? I know that you’ve been avoiding me and that you can barely control yourself! Just kill me, you fucking skeleton! Be brave for once in your life and just- Ugh!” My childish tantrum was interrupted by a sharp pain on my back. His white, bony hand enveloped my neck with a firm grip, lifting me from the ground and devoiding me from my last breath. With a swift movement and a strength I didn’t know he possessed, Sans had lifted me by the neck and slammed my body against the living room wall. 

“I have already killed you 582 times. I would’ve killed you a 583rd if I was guaranteed that you wouldn’t fucking come back again! I swear to god, Chara, if it wasn’t for Toriel…” 

“Chara…?”

Hearing his name produced a sharp pain on my head, a pain which felt like a thousand needles continuously piercing my skull. Anger made way for sadness.

“Sans… I am not Chara. I’m Frisk.”  
“Yeah, right, whatever you say, you murderous little piece of crap!”  
“Sans, please.”

The only sound that could be heard was the clock, ticking away the little time I had left, arrhythmically accompanying my own crazy heartbeat. Sans’ grip began to loosen, allowing me to breathe in deeply. 

“But… it was you on the Hall…”  
“Yes… and no… it’s complicated”.

I slowly felt my feet touching the floor, inch by inch, until I was standing once again, leaning against the cold wall of the living room. Sans moved away his bony hand, leaving a palpitating, hot ache where his hand had exerted pressure.   
My heartbeat slowly decreased, gradually matching the clock on the wall.

The Skeleton stood in front of me, with his eye sockets blank in disbelief. His arms, limp by his side, randomly twitched as time passed by.

I don’t know how long we spent together, looking at each other, as if we were peering deeply into our very souls. Nonetheless, he was still wary, attentive to any sudden or strange movement. 

“Kid”.  
“Yes, Sans?”  
“I…”  
“Help!”

Our conversation was cut short by loud, desperate cries for help in the distance.


	24. To hell and beyond

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys, I really do try my best to upload as soon as I can!   
> But writer's block is a thing :(   
> Well, hope you enjoy the story so far!

Sans and I shared one quick side glance. I rushed to the front door, and when I looked back, he had disappeared. Damn his teleportation.   
I held the door knob, pondering between going out and staying inside. I had avoided death, yet again, but… why did I feel so relieved? 

I was about to give up and go to bed, when more and more piercing screams and ruckus could be heard. It gradually became louder, and naturally, that could not mean anything good. It was the first time that there had been so much noise. It couldn’t be a simple accident. I decided against common sense, put my sneakers on and stepped outside. 

First, it was the scent of smoke which penetrated deep into my nostrils. Then, the heat, unbearable and unsuitable for the winter season. And finally, the flames captured my gaze… huge columns of red fire dancing and enveloping the houses of my loved ones, the trees and the shops of the town where I had been living since the Liberation. 

Gently but surely, the screams and the sound of people running around began to fade, as if I was hearing them through a tunnel. A high-pitched sound resounded above everything else, and little by little, whatever I saw seemed to be watched in a movie screen. I wasn’t there. I was merely a spectator watching a terrible movie. Or that’s what I wanted to believe.

I walked, one foot after the other, towards the centre of the ruckus. Beside me, humans, with their heads covered, ran around the town carrying guns, bombs, chains and bats. I saw as each and every one of them battled with my beloved friends and neighbours. I saw Alphys running away with the civilians, only to be massacred by a machine gun. I saw dust. Piles and piles of dust being blown away with the wind. And me? No one paid attention to the little human girl walking around, entranced. They were just too busy doing their things.

With every step I took, another life was stolen. With every breath, another home was burned to ashes. Another family turned to dust. 

Eventually, after walking aimlessly, I got to the town square. There, I was greeted by a gruesome spectacle. Toriel was like a beautiful angel of death. She had lifted herself from the ground and had a serene but fierce expression in her eyes. Her magical fire burst from her loving paws and engulfed the gruesome murderers, driving them to their painful deaths. Asgore stood with her, roaring with anger, piercing them with his enormous trident or burning them down with magical fire. I had never seen him fight with such intensity… and beside both of them stood Sans, his eye blazing with the blue flame I knew so well. He was using his two hands to keep enemies at bay, throwing them away with terrible force or piercing them with bones. They were back to back, fighting them off with a rage and will I didn’t know they possessed. 

There must have been hundreds of humans fighting and burning everything down. Sometimes, they would come at them three or four at a time, but were easily dispatched by either of them. Nevertheless, I could see beads of sweat rolling down their foreheads. They were getting tired. The enemies only needed one moment of distraction, and everything would be gone. 

I stood there in the open, not knowing what to do. There was nobody else left. Just them, the fire and the murderers. 

Suddenly, I caught Toriel’s gaze just she was burning down an enemy. She turned around and stared at me in awe, her eyes wide open.

“My child!”

Her voice brought me back to reality.

“Mom, no!”

Three gunshots. That’s all it took to turn her loving gaze into dust. 

“Tori! Ugh!”

Who would have known a huge knife could bring dad to his knees?   
Now, only Sans was left. 

Tears began gushing out of my eyes as my throat emitted a terrible, guttural scream. Everything was gone. My family was gone. What had happened? 

The sound of static ringed in my ears. Louder, louder and louder still.   
“NO!”  
My mind went blank.

I don’t know how much time passed until I woke up. It was difficult to tell, for my memories were still a bit hazy. I sat up. When my eyes had adjusted themselves to the darkness, I found myself in a familiar place: Waterfall.   
“Hello, Frisk”.  
His deep voice made me shudder.

The tall skeleton-like figure stood next to me, stretching his hand to help me stand up, a huge smile on his face. His voice no longer sounded static-like, and his figure, this time, was much defined. 

Warily, I took his hand. It had a huge hole on what could be called his palm. He kept on smiling. “I knew you would be back”.

“Who are you?”  
“Me? Oh, what does it really matter? I used to exist where you live now, but that was so long ago it seems to be but a dream.”  
“Am I… dead?”  
“Dead? Oh no, no, no… You merely travelled here, to my dimension, little Frisk, that’s all. You did as I told you to. You stabilised your determination.”  
“Where is here?”  
“It is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. I see it all, I live it all and nothing at the same time. I see you, but you can’t see me. Nobody does, and nobody remembers. Nobody except…”  
“Sans.”  
“Yes. My child is truly an exceptional one. Too young to be so messed up but oh, well. We can’t really change what we have already lived, right?”  
“Your child!?” I asked, in amazement. Doesn’t Pap remember his own father? That’s why they had never touched the subject?   
“That is… a long story. We don’t have enough time. I had called you here before, but your determination was so unstable I couldn’t make you stay long enough. I had summoned here to try to prevent you about this awful business, you see… That’s what I wanted you to tell Sans. He would have believed you, and he will now, mind you. It’s going to be fun when both of you wake up.” He chuckled.  
“What do you mean… prevent?”  
“Your determination is tremendous, Frisk, unlike any other human. That’s what gives you power to travel through time and space, to different timelines. Now, you can go back and look for this crazy group of people to dismantle them and avoid tragedy!”

I felt dizzy. I never knew that’s why I could do that! Hearing someone explain it so easily was a huge relief.   
“Then, I can use it whenever I want?”  
“Theoretically, yes. But you are not capable now.”  
“Oh…”

Suddenly, the static came back. His deep voice began to mix with it, his body becoming blurry and intangible. He widened his eye sockets.

“There’s not much time! Remember, talk to my son! You can do it together. And please… tell him I love him.”

Once again, my mind went blank.


End file.
